THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

IN  MEMORY  OF 
ALEXANDER  GOLDSTEIN 


PAPERS 


RELATING    TO 


THE    GARRISON    MOB. 


EDITED   BY 


THEODORE    LTMAN,    3D. 


CAMBRIDGE  : 
WELCH,   BIGELOW,   AND    COMPANY, 

I'KINTERS   TO   THE    UNIVERSITY. 

1870. 


LOAN  STACK 


UNIVERSITY  PRESS  :  WELCH,  BIGELOW,  &  Co., 
CAMBRIDGE. 


f- 


HARDLY  a  night  passes  in  any  of  our  large  cities 
without  greater  violence  done  to  person  and  to 
property  than  occurred  in  the  so-called  "Garrison 
mob."  Although  its  results  scarcely  entitle  it  to  the 
name  of  a  riot,  it  has  more  historical  importance 
than  can  be  claimed  by  some  battles.  This  wretched 
street  fight  was  indeed  the  first  muttering  of  that 
awful  storm  which  was  to  burst  over  this  country  a 
quarter  of  a  century  later. 

In  October  of  1835  there  had  come  to  Boston 
Mr.  George  Thompson,  a  Scotchman,  who  proposed 
to  speak  publicly  in  favor  of  the  abolition  of  negro 
slavery.  This  was  a  discussion  which  few  people 
then  heard  patiently,  especially  from  the  lips  of  a 
foreigner ;  and  a  considerable  excitement  followed. 

There  was  to  be  a  meeting  of  the  Female  Anti- 
slavery  Society,  and  the  Mayor,  Theodore  Lyman,  Jr., 
sent  a  messenger  to  Mr.  Garrison,  editor  of  an  anti- 
slavery  paper  called  the  Liberator,  to  ask  if  Thomp 
son  would  then  speak;  because,  in  such  a  case,  it 
would  be  necessary  to  provide  additional  police. 
Mr.  Garrison  replied  that  Thompson  would  not  be 


132 


present,  and  consequently  no  unusual  precautions 
were  taken.  The  meeting  took  place  at  the  rooms 
of  the  Society,  No.  46  Washington  Street,  in  the 
afternoon  of  October  21st. 

The  Mayor  was  soon  told  that  the  few  constables 
on  the  spot  were  not  enough  to  preserve  order,  and 
he  went  in  person  with  more  men.  The  mob  be 
came  larger  and  more  threatening,  but  was  prevented 
by  the  police  from  entering  the  building.  Mr.  Gar 
rison,  considering  his  person  in  imminent  danger,  es 
caped  by  a  back  window  into  Wilson's  Lane,  where 
he  was  seized  and  roughly  handled  by  the  rioters, 
and  was  dragged  into  State  Street.  There  he  was 
rescued  by  the  authorities,  and  taken  into  the  Old 
State  House,  a  portion  of  which  was  then  used  as  a 
City  Hall.  As  night  was  drawing  on,  and  the  mob 
seemed  likely  to  grow  too  strong  for  the  constables, 
it  was  thought  best  to  place  Mr.  Garrison  for  safety 
in  the  jail,  and  to  this  end  he  was  committed,  pro 
forma.,  as  implicated  in  a  riot.  He  was  taken  from 
the  City  Hall,  placed  by  dint  of  hard  fighting  in  a 
carriage,  and  driven  safely  to  the  jail.  The  next 
morning  he  was  set  free,  having  sustained  certain 
damage  to  his  clothing,  but  none  in  his  person. 

Such  is  a  sketch  of  this  riot,  and  one  that  all 
parties  will  assent  to  as  true.  But  there  are  other 
and  important  points  which  are  by  no  means  so 
easily  settled.  The  following  newspaper  articles  will 
bring  out,  quite  emphatically,  some  of  these  points, 
and  will  serve  to  introduce  a  general  consideration 
of  the  affair. 


5 


No.  I. 

[From  the  Boston  Daily  Advertiser  of  Wednesday,  November  3,  1869.] 
THE    GARRISON   MOB. 

To  THE  EDITORS  OF  THE  BOSTON  DAILY  ADVERTISER  :  — 

In  your  report  of  Mr.  Phillips's  lecture  on  the 
Question  of  To-morrow,  he  is  made  to  say,  concern 
ing  the  Garrison  or  "  Gentleman's  "  riot,  "  He  saw 
the  Mayor  of  the  city,  cap  in  hand,  almost  on  his 
knees,  entreating  the  men  who  were  his  social  com 
panions  to  have  the  kindness  to  obey  the  laws." 

I  beg  to  say  that  the  above  statement  is  false. 
The  Mayor  of  the  city,  with  the  slender  police  force 
of  that  time,  rescued  Mr.  Garrison  by  main  force,  and 
saved  his  life. 

This  statement  I  make  for  the  information  of  the 
present  generation.  Those  who  knew  the  Mayor 
knew  also  that  he  was  not  a.man  to  go  on  his  knees 
to  anybody,  certainly  not  to  mobs. 

It  seems  a  little  hard,  when  there  are  so  many 
living  men  at  whom  Mr.  Phillips  can  throw  mud,  that 
he  should  not  confine  his  pastime  to  them. 
Very  respectfully, 

THEODORE   LYMAN. 


No.  II. 

THE    GARRISON   MOB. 

To  THE  EDITORS  OF  THE  BOSTON  DAILY  ADVERTISER  :  — 

I  see  the  present  Mr.  Theodore  Lyman  denies  the 
correctness  of  my  statement  as  to  his  father's  con 
duct  at  the  Garrison  mob.  I  said  that  Mayor  Ly 
man  "  besought,  instead  of  commanding,  that  day, 
and  was,  metaphorically  speaking,  on  his  knees  to 
the  mob."  His  son  disbelieves  this,  because  such 
conduct  would  be  very  unlike  his  father.  He  was 
in  his  cradle  that  day.  I  was  in  Washington  Street. 
I  saw  his  father  beg  and  sue ;  I  heard  him  beseech 
and  entreat  that  mob  to  disperse  and  preserve  order. 
He  never  once  commanded  or  sought  to  control  it. 
He  never  vindicated  his  office  by  even  attempting 
to  rally  a  force  and  maintain  order.  Had  he  issued 
one  command,  even  one  that  was  disobeyed,  he 
would  have  done  all  that  in  him  lay  to  redeem 
Boston,  and  I  should  have  honored  him.  I  saw  him 
consent,  if  not  assist,  at  tearing  down  the  antislavery 
sign  and  throwing  it  to  the  mob,  to  propitiate  its 
rage.  The  city  was  mine  as  well  as  his,  and  I  hung 
my  head,  ashamed  of  it  and  him. 

He  was  lamentably  wanting  on  that  occasion  in 
all  that  befits  a  magistrate.  Pie  broke  his  pledge, 
made  a  week  before,  to  the  Female  Antislavery 
Society.  The  only  order  he  issued  that  day  was 
one  ordering  its  members,  legally  met  in  their  own 
hall,  to  disperse.  He  never  commanded  the  mob  to 
disperse. 


The  Mayor  did  well  in  giving  Mr.  Garrison  the 
only  refuge  which  Boston,  under  such  a  mayor, 
could  furnish,  —  its  jail.  He  would  have  done  his 
duty  had  he  vindicated,  or  died  in  the  attempt  to 
vindicate,  Mr.  Garrison's  right  to  speak  what  and 
where  he  pleased,  and  to  sleep  under  his  own  roof 
in  safety. 

Then  his  career  would  have  stood  an  honor  to 
that  generation  and  an  example  to  all  coming  ones. 
He  had  ample  means  to  control  that  mob.  Ten 
men  shot  and  sent  to  deserved  graves  would  have 
scattered  the  mob  in  ten  minutes.  I  could  name  a 
dozen  men  who  would  have  been  equal  to  that 
emergency.  Mr.  Hayes,  lately  of  the  Boston  po 
lice,  standing  in  Lyman's  place,  would  have  reversed 
the  record  of  that  hour.  Mr.  Garrison  would  have 
slept  that  night  at  home.  Some  of  the  gentlemen 
mobocrats  would  have  slept  in  graves,  and  some 
would  have  filled  Mr.  Garrison's  cell  in  the  Boston 
jail. 

Twenty  years  ago  I  said,  "  The  time  will  come 
when  sons  will  deem  it  unkind  and  unchristian  to 
remind  the  world  of  acts  their  fathers  take  pride  in." 
That  hour  has  come.  I  refer  to  old  shames,  not  to 
insult  the  dead,  but  to  control  the  living.  I  have 
no  ill-will  toward  Mayor  Lyman.  His  services  to 
the  cause  of  education  are  an  honor  to  his  memory ; 
and,  if  report  can  be  trusted,  he  bitterly  repented 
his  weakness  on  that  shameful  day. 

But  evil-doers  have  one  motive  more  to  restrain 
them,  if  they  can  be  made  to  feel  that  their  children 
will  blush  for  the  names  they  inherit.  I  bring  these 


8 


things  up  to  show  the  world  that  reformers  have 
terrible  memories,  and  that,  even  if  base  acts  win 
office  and  plaudits  to-day,  the  ears  of  the  actor's 
children  will  tingle  at  the  report  of  them  half  a 
century  hence. 

WENDELL  PHILLIPS. 
November  3,  1869. 

No.  III. 

[From  the  Boston  Daily  Advertiser  of  Monday,  November  8,  1869.] 
THE    GARRISON   MOB. 

To  THE  EDITORS  OF  THE  BOSTON  DAILY  ADVERTISER  :  — 

Mr.  Wendell  Phillips  must  take  a  flattering  view 
of  his  past  life  when  he  assumes  that  any  judicial 
mind  will  accept  his  statements  as  reliable. 

Although  I  was  "  in  my  cradle  "  when  the  Garri 
son  riot  took  place,  and  was  therefore  unable  to  raise 
my  infant  voice  in  beseeching  the  multitude,  I  have 
not  written  without  various  and  abundant  docu 
mentary  evidence  of  the  truth  of  my  assertions,  — 
assertions  further  confirmed  by  letters  since  received 
from  an  eyewitness. 

I  have  also  a  minute  account  of  the  whole  affair 
in  the  handwriting  of  the  Mayor,  whose  word,  I 
may  be  allowed  to  think,  is  not  more  prejudiced 
than,  and  certainly  as  generally  reliable  as,  that  of 
Mr.  Phillips,  who  says  he  was  present. 

I  will  not  fill  your  columns  with  a  matter  merely 
personal,  by  printing  letters  or  other  testimony.  I 
will  simply  state  that  I  am  prepared  to  prove  to  the 
satisfaction  of  any  reasonable  person,  — 


1.  That  the  Mayor  did  not  humble  himself  before 
the  mob,  but  that,  on  the  contrary,  he  told  them, 
from  the  door  of  the  Old  State  House,  that  the  law 
should  be  maintained  if  it  cost  him  his  life. 

2.  That  he  did  not  assist  in,  or  consent  to,  the 
throwing  of  the  Liberator  sign  to  the  mob. 

3.  That,  with  his  own  hands,  and  not  without  per 
sonal  risk,  he  rescued  Mr.  Garrison  from  a  furious 
crowd. 

4.  That  he  did  a  very  sensible  thing  in  keeping 
Mr.  Garrison  in  jail  overnight ;    and  that  Mr.  Gar 
rison  himself,  at  that  particular  moment,  was   the 
person  who  most  clearly  appreciated  this  happy  con 
trivance. 

5.  That  the  Mayor  never  "  repented "  his  action, 
but  always  felt  grateful  to  have  been  able  to  over 
come  so  considerable  a  crisis  without  loss  of  life. 

In  conclusion,  allow  me  to  say  that  I  do  not  blush 
for  my  father ;  but,  in  a  spirit  of  Christian  charity, 
I  would  gladly  blush  for  Wendell  Phillips,  were  he 
not  past  all  such  help. 

Very  respectfully, 

THEODORE   LYMAN. 


10 

No.  IY. 
THE   MOB   OF   1835. 

To  THE  EDITORS  OF  THE  BOSTON  DAILY  ADVERTISER  :  — 

Mr.  Theodore  Lyman  considers  my  testimony  of 
no  value.  If  it  concerned  only  a  private  matter,  I 
should  ask  no  further  hearing.  But  the  mob  of 
1835  is  one  of  grave  interest  and  importance.  I 
will  not,  however,  burden  your  columns  with  evi 
dence  ;  but,  choosing  one  of  the  statements  he  says 
he  can  prove,  I  will  show  your  readers  how  utterly 
he  is  mistaken  on  that  point,  and  leave  them  to 
draw  their  own  inferences  as  to  the  other  assertions 
he  makes.  The  sacrifice  of  the  sign  "Antislavery 
Rooms"  was  a  decisive  act,  showing,  far  better 
than  words  could,  the  attitude  of  the  Mayor  towards 
the  mob.  I  said  Mayor  Lyman  consented  to  it,  if 
he  did  not  assist  in  it.  His  son  says  he  is  prepared 
to  prove,  — 

"  2.  That  he  [Mayor  Lyman]  did  not  assist  in,  nor 
consent  to,  the  throwing  of  the  Liberator  sign  to  the 
mob." 

Let  us  see  how  the  evidence  stands.  The  mob 
took  place  October  21,  1835.  The  Boston  Atlas  of 
October  22,  1835,  says  :  "  Several  gentlemen,  at 
the  suggestion  of  the  Mayor,  took  down  the  sign 
bearing  the  words  'Antislavery  Rooms,'  and  .threw 
it  into  the  street.  It  was  dashed  into  a  thousand 
splinters  in  a  moment." 

The  New  England  Galaxy  of  that  week  says ; 
"  '  Down  with  the  sign  ! '  (Antislavery  Rooms)  was  at 


11 


length  shouted,  and  two  or  three  gentlemen,  at  the 
request 'of  the  Mayor,  took  it  down  and  lowered  it 
into  the  street,  where  it  was  speedily  demolished." 

Mr.  Lucius  B.  Marsh,  No.  210  Warren  Avenue, 
Boston,  writes  me  this  morning  :  "  I  saw  Mr.  Harry 
Williams  leave  the  Mayor's  office  (Old  State  House), 
and  he  went  directly  to  the  stairs  which  led  up  to 
the  Antislavery  Rooms,  followed  by  a  large  number 
of  people,  who  evidently  knew,  or  seemed  to  know, 
the  programme.  (One  of  them  carried  a  hammer.) 
Mr.  Williams  in  a  moment  or  two  appeared  at  the 
window  with  his  friend  with  the  hammer.  Mr.  Wil 
liams  opened  the  window,  and  they  both  commenced 
to  take  down  the  sign.  He  handed  the  sign  towards 
the  sidewalk,  where  it  was  broken  to  pieces.  Mr. 
Williams  then  said  :  '  Fellow-citizens,  I  have  been 
directed  by  his  Honor  the  Mayor  to  take  down  this 
obnoxious  sign.  And  you  are  now  requested  to  go 
to  your  homes.' " 

Mr.  J.  B.  Palmer,  No.  91  Devonshire  Street,  says 
in  a  letter  to  me,  dated  also  this  morning :  "  Mr. 
Williams  appeared  at  the  window  of  the  Antislavery 
Rooms,  and  said  that,  by  the  order  of  the  Mayor  the 
sign  would  be  removed,  or  words  to  the  same  pur 
port.  This  I  am  positive  of.  The  sign  was  loosened, 
....  jumped  on,  broken  in  pieces,  and  carried  off  by 
the  mob." 

Mr.  N.  B.  Chamberlain,  No.  310  Washington  Street, 
in  a  letter  to  me,  just  received,  says:  "I  can 
assure  you  that  I  went  with  Harry  Williams  to  the 
Old  State  House,  and  met  Mayor  Lyman  on  the 
steps,  during  the  afternoon  of  the  Garrison  mob. 


12 


Mr.  Williams  asked  permission  to  take  down  the 
antislavery  sign.  I  protested  against  such  submis 
sion  to  the  mob,  repeating  my  protest  as  often  as 
Mr.  Williams  urged  the  measure.  Mr.  Lyman  ap 
peared  exceedingly  agitated,  and  in  fearful  doubt 
what  to  do  ;  but  at  last  reluctantly  consented.  Mr. 
Williams  immediately  left,  I  following  to  the  stairs 
of  the  Antislavery  Kooms.  Mr.  Williams  went  up 
with  hammer  in  hand,  appeared  at  the  window,  and 
commenced  tearing  down  the  sign.  It  was  soon 
accomplished,  when  he  exultingly  declared  the  work 
done  by  order  of  the  Mayor." 

This  afternoon  I  have  been  favored  with  the  fol 
lowing  note  from  my  friend  Mr.  Garrison  :  — 

"  In  case  you  make  any  rejoinder  to  Mr.  Lyman's 
reply  to  you  in  the  Advertiser  of  this  morning,  I 
desire  you  to  state,  in  my  behalf,  that  the  assertion 
of  Mr.  L.  in  regard  to  my  having  been  sent  to  jail 
by  his  father,  at  the  time  of  the  mob  in  1835, — 
'  Mr.  Garrison  himself,  at  that  particular  moment, 
was  the  person  who  most  clearly  appreciated  this 
happy  contrivance,'  —  is  without  any  foundation.  A 
happy  contrivance,  indeed,  to  shut  up  an  innocent 
man  in  jail  in  order  to  save  his  life,  and  omit  to 
arrest  any  of  the  rioters  who  were  seeking  his  life  ! 
And  this  a  faithful  discharge  of  official  duty  by  one 
sworn  to  execute  the  laws  of  the  Commonwealth ! 
You  are  certainly  right  in  your  criticisms  of  Mayor 
Lyman's  conduct." 

I  leave  the  decision  on  this  point  to  your  readers. 
Yours  respectfully, 

WENDELL  PHILLIPS. 

November  8,  1869. 


13 


It  is  proper  first  to  see  what  charges  Mr.  Phillips 
brings  forward.  In  his  lecture  he  made  only  one, 
which  I  will  call  — 

A.  That  the  Mayor  meanly  entreated  rioters  to 
obey  the  laws  (see  No.  I.). 

In  No.  II.  it  will  be  found  that  he  has  added  as 
follows  :  — 

B.  That  the  Mayor  never  sought  to  command  the 
mob,  nor  did  he  issue  any  order. 

C.  That  he  consented,  if  he  did  not  assist,  at  tear 
ing  down  the  antislavery  sign,  and  throwing  it  to 
the  mob,  to  propitiate  its  rage. 

D.  That  he  broke  his  pledge  (what  pledge  ?)  made 
to  the  Female  Antislavery  Society. 

E.  That  he  ordered  said  Society  to  disperse. 

F.  That  he  had  ample  means  to  control  the  mob, 
and  should  have  shot  ten  men ;  but  did  not  control, 
and  did  not  shoot. 

Before  considering  these  charges,  it  will  be  well 
to  introduce  two  or  three  accounts  of  this  affair. 
The  first  of  these  (No.  V.)  is  in  the  handwriting  of 
Mayor  Lyman,  and  was  found  among  his  papers. 
The  second  (No.  VI.)  is  an  article  signed  "  Abolition 
ist,"  published  in  the  Liberator,  November,  1835. 
It  was  written  by  Hon.  Samuel  E.  Sewall,  in  reply 
to  a  singularly  scurrilous  attack  on  the  Mayor,  in 
the  same  paper.  Mr.  Sewall  is  well  known  as  one 
of  the  "  Original  Abolitionists,"  and  his  testimony  is 
particularly  important,  because  he  was  in  the  build 
ing  during  the  riot  and  assisted  Garrison  in  his 
escape.  The  third  account  (No.  VII.)  is  that  of  Mr. 
Garrison  himself.  A  few  passages,  which  do  not  af- 


14 


feet  the  present  discussion,  are  omitted.  The  origi 
nal  will  be  found  in  Mrs.  Stowe's  "  Men  of  our  Times/' 
page  172. 


No.  V. 
ACCOUNT  BY  MAYOR  LYMAN, 

IN    HIS    OWN    HANDWRITING,    FOUND    AMONG    HIS    PAPERS. 

I  think  it  was  on  the  18th  of  October  that  a 
notice  appeared  in  the  Transcript,  a  daily  evening 
paper,  that  a  meeting  of  the  Female  Abolition  So 
ciety  would  be' held  in  the  Society's  room  in  Wash 
ington  Street  on  the  21st  instant,  at  three  o'clock  in 
the  afternoon,  and  that  addresses  might  be  expected 
from  leading  friends  of  the  cause.  In  the  course  of 
the  morning  of  the  last-mentioned  day  an  anony 
mous  handbill  *  was  distributed,  stating  that  Thomp 
son  would  address  this  meeting,  and  calling  on  the 
citizens  to  "  snake  him  out "  and  carry  him  to  the 
tar-kettle.  Neither  the  author  of  the  handbill  nor 

*  THOMPSON,   THE  ABOLITIONIST. 

That  infamous  foreigner  known  as  Thompson  will  hold  forth  this  after 
noon  at  the  Liberator  office,  No.  48  Washington  Street.  The  present  is 
a  fair  opportunity  for  the  friends  of  the  Union  to  snake  Thompson  out. 
It  will  be  a  contest  between  Thompson  and  the  friends  of  the  Union. 
A  purse  of  100  dollars  has  been  raised  by  a  number  of  patriotic  citizens, 
to  reward  the  individual  who  shall  first  lay  violent  hands  on  Thompson, 
so  that  he  may  be  brought  to  the  tar-kettle  before  dark. 

Friends  of  the  Union,  be  vigilant. 

BOSTON,  Wednesday,  12  o'clock. 


15 


the  mode  of  its  circulation  was,  at  the  time,  known, 
or  could  be  traced. 

In  the  forenoon  of  the  21st  instant  I  sent  one  of 
the  Deputy-Marshals  *  to  the  Liberator  office,  a  well- 
known  Abolition  paper,  in  order  to  ascertain  whether 
Thompson  was  in  town  or  not.  The  officer  was 
assured  by  Garrison,  one  of  the  editors  of  the  paper, 
that  Thompson  was  not,  and  that  he  would  not  be 
present  at  the  meeting  in  the  afternoon.  On  re 
ceiving  this  information  I  thought  that,  as  Thomp 
son  was  the  object  of  popular  disfavor,  no  serious 
disturbance  of  the  peace  was  to  be  feared  at  a  meet 
ing  it  was  known  he  did  not  attend.  I  took,  there 
fore,  no  other  precaution  than  to  have  a  small  num 
ber  of  police-officers  assembled  for  the  afternoon. 
More  especially  I  conceived  there  was  no  danger  of 
a  riot,  as,  but  a  short  time  before,  the  same  Society,  I 
believe,  held  a  meeting,  where  quiet  and  order  were 
maintained  by  a  few  constables,  though  a  number 
of  noisy,  ill-disposed  persons  attempted  to  interrupt 
the  proceedings. 

During  the  summer  and  autumn,  the  public  mind 
being  in  a  very  heated,  irritable  state,  the  city  had 
now  and  then  been  menaced  with  a  riot.  On  seeing 
meetings  announced  that  I  thought  likely  to  lead  to 
tumult  and  disorder,  I  had,  on  several  occasions, 
expressed  that  opinion  to  the  persons  concerned,  at 
the  same  time  admitting  their  right  to  hold  these 
meetings,  and  acknowledging  that  it  was  my  duty 
and  purpose  to  protect  them  in  the  exercise  of  their 
right.  I  expressed  these  sentiments  to  some  gentle- 

*  See  No.  XIV. 


16 


men  of  the  Methodist  connection,  when  it  was  pub 
licly  announced  that  Avery,*  who  had  been  recently 
tried  in  Rhode  Island  for  a  murder  of  a  very  aggra 
vating  description,  would  preach  on  a  week-day 
evening ;  once,  also,  to  some  members  of  the 
Colonization  Society,  and  twice,  at  least,  to  mem 
bers  of  Abolition  Societies.  Some  of  the  meetings 
proposed  took  place,  others  did  not;  and  though 
there  was  once  or  twice  a  good  deal  of  noise  and 
crowding,  nothing  like  a  riot  occurred. 

In  the  afternoon  of  the  21st  I  went  to  the  Mayor 
and  Aldermen's  room  a  few  minutes  before  three 
o'clock,  and  as  I  passed  across  Washington  Street, 
seeing  that  a  number  of  people  had  assembled  in 
the  neighborhood  of  the  Abolition  Room,  I  sent  Mr. 
Pollard  to  the  spot  with  several  officers,  with  instruc 
tions  to  send  for  me  if  he  thought  necessary.  I  was 
soon  informed  that  the  crowd  was  increasing  very 
rapidly,  and  that  the  Society  could  not  proceed  in 
their  business.  In  fact,  on  reaching  the  ground,  I 
found  the  street  literally  full  opposite  the  door  lead 
ing  to  the  Society's  room,  which  was  on  the  third 
story.  Of  this  door  and  passage-way  I  took  posses 
sion,  by  the  aid  of  the  officers  already  on  the  spot 
and  of  the  few  that  came  with  me.  I  placed  myself 
on  the  third  or  fourth  step  of  the  staircase,  where  I 
could  see  all  in  the  street  opposite  the  door,  and 
some  distance  to  the  right  and  left.  The  crowd 
greatly  increasing,  and  the  excitement  exceedingly 

*  A  clergyman  tried  for  the  mysterious  murder  of  a  young  woman, 
but  acquitted,  both  by  the  court  and  by  his  p^yn  sect.  He  died  in  Ohio 
during  the  past  year.  —  ED. 


17 

so,  I  stated  to  the  people  within  the  sound  of  my 
voice,  that  Thompson  was  not  in  town,  supposing 
that  this  declaration  might  induce  some  to  go  away 
and  render  others  more  quiet,  but  it  had  no  such 
effect.  The  mob  becoming  more  boisterous  and 
inflamed,  I  was  well  satisfied  that  we  were  menaced 
with  a  serious  riot.  The  passage-way  was,  however, 
maintained  by  the  officers,  but  by  no  means  with 
out  the  exercise  of  great  strength  as  well  as  spirit. 
Having  no  doubt  of  what  was  approaching,  I  went 
up  stairs  with  the  intention  of  representing  the 
state  of  things  to  the  females  assembled,  and  of  ad 
vising  them  to  withdraw.  I  found  twenty  or  thirty 
persons  (perhaps  one  half  lads)  crowding  about  the 
door  of  the  room.  I  was  not  aware  till  that  time 
that  these  individuals  were  in  the  building,  but  I 
suppose  that  they  entered  before  Mr.  Pollard  reached 
the  spot.  And  in  consequence  of  the  dense  throng 
now  in  front,  it  was  very  difficult  to  get  them  out. 
On  entering  the  room,  I  found  twenty-five  or  thirty 
women  assembled  there,  mostly  white,  but  some 
negroes  and  mulattoes.  They  were  all  seated  except 
the  chairman ;  but,  on  speaking  to  them,  several  rose 
and  came  towards  me.  One  said  in  substance,  that 
if  it  was  necessary  to  die  in  that  cause,  they  might 
as  well  die  there  and  then.  Not  considering  these 
women  in  any  danger  of  their  lives  or  of  personal 
injury,  —  at  the  worst,  exposed  only  to  insult  and 
to  be  the  spectators  of  a  disgraceful  riot, — I  smiled 
and  replied,  "  At  any  rate  they  could  not  die  there." 
Another  said  that  they  would  withdraw,  if  I  would 
secure  them  a  passage.  To  effect  this  I  went  down 

3 


18 


stairs  to  the  street  door,  and  after  some  difficulty  a 
lane  was  opened  in  the  crowd  through  which  the 
women  passed.  There  were  some  groans  and  some 
hissing  by  the  mob,  but  more  laughter.  The 
women  appeared  to  be  very  willing  to  leave  the 
room.  I  heard  no  objection  expressed  beyond  the 
remark,  already  mentioned,  in  regard  to  martyrdom. 

But  the  mob  did  not  disperse.  On  the  contrary, 
they  now  began  to  cry  vehemently,  even  furiously, 
for  Garrison.  At  this  time  I  did  not  know  that  he 
was  in  the  building.  It  was  now  perhaps  four 
o'clock,*  and  the  afternoon  was  dark  and  cloudy. 
We  had  the  prospect  before  us  of  a  most  stormy 
night.  I  had  no  police  beyond  what  was  necessary 
to  keep  the  street  door  during  daylight,  and  to 
guard  the  upper  rooms  of  the  building,  nor  any 
means  of  procuring  an  additional  force  till  after 
dark,  and  in  season  to  prevent  immediate  and  great 
outrages  and  damage  both  to  persons  and  property. 

Thompson  not  being  in  town,  Garrison  now  ap 
peared  to  be  the  object  of  popular  vengeance.  I 
ascertained,  also,  about  this  time,  that  there  were 
two  or  three  gentlemen  in  the  building  that  were 
his  friends,  and  that  felt  very  solicitous  for  his  safety, 
but  they  said  that  he  could  not  get  out  on  the  roof 
or  escape  by  the  rear.  A  person,  also,  that  I  thought 
owned  the  building  or  property  in  it,  was  very 
anxious  for  Garrison's  removal,  for  fear  of  injury  to 
the  premises  by  the  mob.  Up  to  this  time  I  had 
left  my  position  on  the  staircase  but  once.  Seeing, 
however,  more  and  more  of  the  menacing,  raging 

*  The  sun  sets,  at  that  season,  a  few  minutes  past  five.  —  ED. 


19 


state  of  the  mob,  which,  as  far  as  I  could  judge  from 
the  place  where  I  stood,  increased  continually  in 
numbers,  and  being  exceedingly  anxious  for  Gar 
rison,  for  whom  a  cry  was  often  raised,  I  went  up 
again  to  the  upper  part  of  the  building,  and  in  the 
Abolition  Koom  I  now  saw  Garrison,  and  about  him 
his  friends  that  I  have  mentioned.  There  were  also 
in  the  same  room  several  individuals  that  had  ob 
tained  admittance  before  the  passage-way  was  occu 
pied  by  the  constables.  Whether  the  latter  knew 
Garrison  or  not  I  cannot  say.  I  spoke  to  him,  how 
ever,  and  as  his  friends  had  told  me  that  there  was 
no  means  of  escape  for  him  by  the  roof  or  the  rear  of 
the  building,  I  asked  him  if  he  could  not  find  $  place 
in  the  garret  where  he  could  remain  concealed.  He 
said  that  he  would  see,  and  went  up  the  attic  stairs 
with  alacrity.  This  is  all  that  I  said  to  Garrison 
during  the  afternoon. 

I  returned  to  my  position  at  the  bottom  of  the 
staircase  in  the  passage-way,  which  I  did  not  again 
quit  till  the  mob  rushed  up  Washington  Street. 

From  the  time  that  the  females  withdrew  I  ob 
served  that  the  sign  of  the  Society  now  and  then 
attracted  the  notice  of  this  angry  mob,  their  ill-tem 
per  displaying  itself  in  the  shape  of  shouts  and  yells. 
I  suppose  it  was  the  only  thing  they  could  see  that 
reminded  them  of  the  object  of  their  vengeance.  I 
thought,  too,  that  as  soon  as  it  became  dark,  it  might 
occur  to  these  rioters,  that,  if  they  could  get  stones 
(and  there  were  plenty  there,  as  State  Street  had 
been  recently  macadamized)  they  would  commence 
a  pelting  of  this  sign,  and  from  the  sign  proceed  to 


20 


the  windows  of  the  building,  and  then,  perhaps,  to 
the  constables  and  others  engaged  in  maintaining 
order.  I  therefore  sent  a  person  up  the  stairs  to  see 
if  this  sign  could  be  taken  into  the  room  from  the 
window.  Instead  of  that  being  done,  the  man  was 
interfered  with  by  some  of  the  lads  and  men,  already 
mentioned  as  being  in  the  building,  the  sign-board 
torn  off  the  hooks  and  thrown  down  into  the  street.* 
In  the  mean  time  Garrison  had  escaped.  By  the 
aid  of  his  friends. he  got  out  of  the  back  window  of 
a  bookseller's  shop  upon  a  shed  in  the  rear  of  the 
building,  and  thence  fled  to  Wilson's  Lane.  I  was  in 
formed  of  this  fact  as  soon  as  the  escape  was  effected, 
though  I  did  not  witness  the  transaction.  I  thought 
the  danger  of  a  boisterous  night  was  now  much  di 
minished  ;  Garrison,  I  supposed,  was  safe,  and  I  had 
little  doubt  but  that  sufficient  men  could  be  assem 
bled  in  season  to  prevent,  at  any  rate  to  check  and 
stop,  serious  mischief. 

*  I  think  that  Garrison  in  one  of  his  papers  in  the  Liberator  says  that 
I  "  ordered  "  the  ladies  to  retire  from  the  Abolition  room.  "  An  Ab 
olitionist  "  says,  "  he  urged  the  ladies  to  retire."  "  An  Abolitionist "  is 
Mr.  Samuel  E.  Sewall.  He  was  in  the  building  the  whole  time,  but 
neither  he  nor  Garrison  were  in  the  Abolition  room  at  the  time  I  went 
in;  but  Mr.  Sewall  was  as  likely  to  have  correct  information  from  the 
ladies  themselves  as  Garrison.  He  was  doubtless  as  much  in  their  friend 
ship  and  confidence.  He  states  the  fact  correctly. 

Garrison,  I  think,  also  says,  or  intimates,  that  I  directed  the  sign  of  the 
Society  to  be  thrown  into  the  street. 

"  An  Abolitionist "  says,  the  Mayor,  "  in  sanctioning  the  removal  of  the 
Society's  sign."  This  is  far  from  saying  that  I  ordered  it  to  be  thrown 
into  the  street.  Mr.  Sewall  was  very  active  the  whole  afternoon  in  efforts 
for  Garrison's  security,  and  finally  did  a  great  deal  towards  aiding  him  to 
escape.  He  probably  saw  what  was  done  about  the  sign.  Garrison 
could  not,  for  he  was  concealed.  He  must  have  heard  from  others,  or 
imagined  it. 


21 


Perhaps  ten  minutes  after  I  was  told  that  Gar 
rison  had  escaped  a  person  informed  me  that  the 
mob  had  caught  him.  I  said,  "  No,  he  has  been  gone 
eight  or  ten  minutes."  The  gentleman  repeated  his 
remark,  and  said  that  he  was  in  the  upper  story  of 
the  building  looking  out  of  a  back  window,  and 
from  the  movement  of  the  crowd  he  was  satisfied 
they  had  found  him.  I  thought  this  very  improb 
able,  not  knowing  that  Wilson's  Lane  was  beset. 
While  speaking,  however,  to  Mr.  Pollard,  I  observed 
the  whole  crowd  in  front  of  the  building  turn  and  run 
up  Washington  Street.  I  no  longer  had  any  doubt 
but  that  Garrison,  or  some  one,  was  found.  I  left 
the  passage-way  instantly,  told  the  officers  to  follow, 
and  ran  with  the  mob.  When  I  reached  the  street 
on  the  north  side  of  the  City  Hall,  I  looked  down 
and  saw  a  vast  throng  passing  to  the  south  along 
the  head  of  State  Street.  I  continued  on  past  the 
Post-Office. 

On  my  way  from  the  Liberator  office  to  the  City 
Hall,  —  a  short  distance,  say  one  hundred  and  fifty 
yards,  —  several  persons  said  to  me,  "  They  are  going 
to  hang  him  ;  for  God's  sake,  save  him ! "  —  at  least,  ten 
or  fifteen  said  this.  I  turned  down  the  street  south 
of  the  City  Hall,  and  there  I  saw  Garrison,  without 
his  hat,  in  the  midst  of  what  seemed  a  prodigious 
concourse  of  people.  I  rushed  to  his  rescue.  I  met 
him  a  little  to  the  east  of  the  south  door  of  the 
Hall.  He  was  in  the  hands  of  two  men,  one  hold 
ing  him  with  great  strength  on  each  side.  As  soon 
as  I  reached  Garrison,  he  looked  up  (before,  his  head 
was  bent  to  the  earth)  and  smiled.  I  said  to  the 


22 


men  who  held  him,  "  Take  him  into  my  office."  I 
placed  myself  before  him  and  backed,  as  well  as  I 
could,  towards  the  steps  of  the  Hall.  After  a  short 
struggle,  and  in  the  midst  of  a  vast  deal  of  noise 
and  clamor,  we  reached  the  steps.  Going  up  the 
steps,  I  sank  partly  down  on  a  man  that  had  fallen. 
Garrison  was  forced  into  the  City  Hall,  and  the  doors 
were  shut.  This  was  only  effected  by  the  use  of 
great  physical  strength.  The  mob  made  no  attempt 
to  come  in  at  the  south  door,  but  great  numbers  ran 
round  and  entered  at  the  north  so  as  to  fill  the 
lower  hall.  Garrison  was,  however,  carried  up  stairs. 
I  took  my  station  at  the  foot  of  the  staircase  leading 
to  the  Mayor  and  Aldermen's  room.  The  crowd 
was  extreme  for  a  minute.  '  I  spoke  to  the  people 
and  said  in  substance,  that  the  law  must  be  main 
tained,  the  order  of  the  city  preserved,  and  that  I 
would  lay  down  my  life  on  that  spot  to  effect  these 
objects.  These  remarks  were  well  received.  The 
crowd  continued  intense  in  the  street  on  the  south 
side  of  the  Hall.  I  therefore  went  to  the  window 
over  the  south  door,  and  got  out  on  the  ledge  or  cap 
over  that  door,  where  I  was  able  to  stand,  though 
the  position  was  anything  but  safe.  I  here  again 
spoke  to  the  people  very  much  as  in  the  Hall. 
These  remarks  were  also  well  received.  The  mob 
now  appeared  to  be  waiting  for  a  movement  on  the 
part  of  the  city  authorities.  .  It  was  nearly  dusk,  and 
the  moment  was  critical ;  for  if  Garrison  was  kept  in 
the  City  Hall  till  night,  no  one  could  doubt  but  that 
there  would  be  a  great  tumult.  The  mob  had,  in 
the  first  place,  been  roused  to  fresh  vigor  by  having 


23 


found  Garrison,  and  then  greatly  inflamed  by  having 
had  him  taken  out  of  their  grasp.  After  careful 
deliberation  no  suitable  place  could  be  thought  of 
but  the  jail.  Sheriff  Parkman,  who  was  present, 
said  that  he  would  commit  him  as  a  rioter.  The 
usual  law  paper  was  made  out,  and  Garrison  agreed 
to  go  to  jail  on  the  condition  (as  I  was  informed  by 
Parkman)  that  he  should  not  be  subject  to  any  ex 
pense.  A  carriage  was  procured,  and,  after  a  prodi 
gious  deal  of  resistance  on  the  part  of  the  mob,  he 
was  placed  in  it ;  and,  after  a  second  severe  strug 
gle,  the  carriage  was  driven  off.  The  hackman 
luckily  had  good  horses,  and  had  good  courage 
himself,  for  in  the  course  of  a  hundred  yards  or  so 
he  got  his  horses  into  a  gallop,  and  then,  instead  of 
going  towards  the  jail,  he  drove  towards  Cam 
bridge  bridge.  The  mob  (or  a  part  of  it)  followed 
the  carriage,  but  the  manoeuvre  of  the  hackman  dis 
tracted  them,  and  a  large  portion  stopped  in  Bow- 
doin  Square. 

Running  the  greater  part  of  the  way,  I  reached 
the  jail  before  the  carriage,  which,  however,  soon 
came  up,  but  not  before  between  two  and  three 
hundred  persons  had  assembled  there.  But  a  line 
was  made  to  the  jail  by  officers,  and,  on  the  door 
being  opened,  Garrison  seemed  to  bound  from  the 
carriage  to  the  jail  door  with  a  single  leap.  Mob 
about  the  jail  then  dispersed. 

I  went  to  my  office  and  took  all  the  precautions 
in  my  power  for  the  quiet  of  the  town  during  the 
night,  having  all  the  watch  on  the  alert,  and  having 
officers  placed  in  the  neighborhood  of  Garrison's 


24 


house  and  the  Liberator  office.  The  night  passed 
off  without  disturbance,  though  there  was  a  very 
large  collection  of  people  on  Washington  Street  till 
towards  ten  o'clock. 

Throughout  the  whole  of  this  riot  Garrison  ac 
ceded  cheerfully  and  readily  to  the  measures  pro 
posed  for  his  security  and  protection. 

The  property  destroyed  on  this  occasion,  so  far  as 
I  have  been  informed,  was  a  panel  of  a  door  broken 
in,  a  wooden  partition  somewhat  injured,  and  the 
sign  of  the  Society  broken  up.  The  whole  to  the 
amount,  perhaps,  of  fifteen  or  twenty  dollars. 

Garrison  himself  received  no  personal  injury. 
His  trousers  wrere  torn,  and  I  believe  he  lost  his  hat. 

Mr.  Pollard,  the  city  marshal,  remained  the  whole 
time  by  the  door  of  the  building  while  the  mob 
were  in  Washington  Street ;  Sheriff  Parkman  in  the 
upper  rooms.  Being  in  the  office  when  I  was  sent 
for  early  in  the  afternoon,  he  volunteered  to  go  and 
aid  in  keeping  the  peace.  He  contributed  much  to 
that  object  by  the  courage  he  displayed,  as  well  as 
good-nature,  which  never  left  him,  though  he  was 
once  or  twice  roughly  handled.  It  was  intended 
that  Sheriff  Parkman  should  go  to  the  jail  in  the 
carriage  with  Garrison,  but  he  could  not  be  got  in. 


25 


No.  VI. 

ARTICLE,  BY  HON.  SAMUEL  E.  SEWALL,  SIGNED  "AN  ABOLITION 
IST,"   PUBLISHED    IN    THE   LIBERATOR   IN   NOVEMBER,    1835. 

CONDUCT   OF   THE   MAYOR. 

MR.  GARRISON  :  — 

I  read  with  deep  feelings  of  pain  and  regret  an 
article  in  the  last  Liberator,  signed  "  Hancock/'  in 
which  the  writer  charges  Mr.  Lyman,  the  Mayor  of 
Boston,  with  being  a  co-operator  with  the  mob  in 
this  city  of  the  21st  ult.,  and  makes  a  show  of 
labored  argument  to  substantiate  his  accusation. 

I  am  neither  the  eulogist  nor  the  apologist  of 
Mr.  Lyman.  But  I  believe  that  he  was  as  sincerely 
desirous  of  suppressing  the  riot  as  any  man  in  the 
city,  and  adopted  such  measures  as  seemed  to  him 
calculated  to  effect  the  object.  % 

If  he  committed  any  errors  on  the  occasion,  it  is 
just  that  they  should  be  pointed  out,  but  with  the 
kindness  and  courtesy  which  are  due  to  every  man 
who  means  to  do  his  duty.  To  those  who  are  dis 
posed  to  judge  harshly  of  his  conduct  in  a  new  and 
difficult  emergency,  I  would  say,  Have  you  ever  at 
tempted  to  put  down  a  mob  yourselves  ? 

The  writer  of  the  piece  referred  to  argues,  in  the 
first  place,  that  the  Mayor  was  accessory  to  the  mob, 
from  his  previous  conduct. 

He  says  that  the  Mayor  exerted  all  his  private 
personal  influence  for  some  time  previous  to  Homer 
and  Palmer's  call  for  the  mob,  to  dissuade  Abolition- 

4 


26 

ists  from  holding  public  meetings.  Is  it  fair  from 
this  to  conclude  that  the  Mayor  wished  for  mobs  ? 
His  desire  obviously  was  the  very  reverse,  that  is, 
to  persuade  the  Abolitionists  to  forego  their  meet 
ings,  and  thus  afford  no  excuse  for  mobs.  The  writer 
ought  to  have  added  in  this  connection,  if  he  was 
aware  of  the  fact,  that  Mr.  Lyman  always  said,  if  the 
Abolitionists  chose  to  have  meetings,  in  spite  of 
the  excited  state  of  public  feeling,  he  would  defend 
the  right  of  free  discussion  at  the  peril  of  his  life. 

Mr.  Ly man's  next  offence  is,  that  he  was  chairman 
of  the  proslavery  Faneuil  Hall  meeting.*  I  regret 
that  he  should  have  aided  011  that  disgraceful  occa 
sion  ;  but  I  am  not  aware  that  he  or  any  other  per 
son  who  addressed  that  assembly  was  in  favor  of 
mobs.  Now,  although  the  tendency  of  such  a  meet 
ing,  when  the  public  mind  was  in  a  state  of  effer 
vescence,  was  probably  to  encourage  lawless  violence 
against  Abolitionists,  yet  it  seems  to  me  most  un 
charitable  to  charge  men  like  Mr.  Lyman,  whom  we 
know  to  have  been  always  opposed  to  such  violence, 
with  a  design  to  promote  it,  without  some  more 
direct  evidence  to  substantiate  the  charge. 

In  regard  to  the  gallows  erected  before  Mr.  Gar 
rison's  door,  it  would,  it  seems  to  me,  have  been 
proper  for  the  city  government  to  have  made  efforts 
to  detect  the  offenders  who  placed  it  there.  But  I 
cannot  say  that  the  city  authorities  were  in  favor 

*  "  A  meeting  not  called  for  the  purpose  of  exciting  a  mob  against  the 
Abolitionists, —  but  for  the  expressed  purpose  of  discountenancing  them 

,  —  a  meeting  the  call  for  which  was  signed  by  some  of  the  most 

upright  and  pious  men  in  this  city." 

"ANOTHER  ABOLITIONIST,"  in  the  Liberator,  November,  1835. 


27 

of  mobs  because  they  might  think  the  course  I  ap 
proved  unnecessary  or  inexpedient.  The  gallows,  it 
should  be  recollected,  was  very  promptly  removed 
by  the  city  officers. 

Hancock  next  contends  that  the  conduct  of  the 
Mayor,  between  the  direct  call  for  the  mob  and  its 
assembling,  shows  him  to  have  been  accessory  to  it. 
Hancock  contends  that  when  the  Mayor  knew  of 
the  call  for  violence,  he  was  bound  to  say  that  the 
ladies  should  have  their  meeting,  and  if  appearances 
demanded,  he  was  bound  by  the  laws  of  the  city  to 
have  called  out  the  military,  and  to  have  lined  the 
streets  with  bayonets  and  cannon.  Here,  it  seems  to 
me,  Hancock  is  altogether  wrong.  I  do  not  know 
whether  there  is  any  law  of  the  city  which  author 
izes  the  Mayor  to  assemble  a  military  force,  because 
a  mob  is  anticipated.  But  supposing  there  is  such  a 
law,  the  occasion  did  not  seem  to  require  a  military 
force  to  be  assembled  in  anticipation  of  the  meeting. 
The  Mayor,  I  believe,  had  made  such  arrangements 
as  he  thought  would  be  sufficient  to  quell  the  mob, 
if  any  should  arise.  Was  he  bound  to  do  more  ? 
He  was  promptly  on  the  spot,  soon  after  the  com 
mencement  of  the  tumult,  with  the  City  Marshal  and 
constables,  —  a  force  which  he  probably  supposed 
was  sufficient  for  the  emergency. 

The  conduct  of  the  Mayor  during  the  mob  is 
charged  as  proof  of  his  being  accessory  to  it.  But 
does  Hancock  give  us  any  detailed  account  of  the 
Mayor's  conduct  at  this  time,  in  support  of  the 
charge  ?  0  no.  He  offers  a  long  imaginary  (!!!) 
dialogue,  which  he  says  he  thinks  is  a  just  inference 


28 


from  the  Mayor's  conduct  during  this  period.  A 
more  unfair  course  than  that  adopted  by  your  cor 
respondent  could  scarcely  have  been  conceived  of. 

The  Mayor  is  held  up  to  ridicule  and  contempt  by 
words  put  into  his  mouth  which  he  confessedly  never 
uttered.  Suppose  a  man  on  trial  for  any  offence, 
and  a  witness  should  undertake  to  tell  what  he 
thinks,  judging  from  the  prisoner's  conduct,  he  might 
have  said.  Would  such  a  witness  be  listened  to  for 
a  moment  ?  Yet  this  is  the  mode  in  which  Hancock 
proposes  to  try  the  Mayor. 

Perhaps  I  might  conclude  without  any  further 
answer  to  this  branch  of  the  accusation.  But  let  us 
examine  the  real  course  of  the  Mayor's  conduct,  and 
see  if  it  affords  any  proof  of  his  co-operating  with 
the  mob. 

He  urged  the  ladies  to  retire. 

Whether  this  was  the  most  judicious  course  or 
not  I  shall  not  stop  to  inquire.  I  believe  many 
Abolitionists  think  it  was  right  for  the  ladies  to 
quit  the  room.  It  certainly  affords  us  no  reason 
for  doubting  the  Mayor's  good  faith,  that  he  rec 
ommended  this  course. 

The  Mayor,  with  his  officers,  certainly  cleared  the 
building  of  the  rioters,  and  defended  its  entrance 
afterwards,  for  a  long  time,  against  repeated  and 
violent  assaults. 

He  thus  protected  Mr.  Garrison's  life,  and  the 
property  of  the  Society,  and  so  far,  it  seems  to  me, 
he  deserves  commendation. 

I  will  not,  for  a  moment,  justify  the  Mayor  in 
sanctioning  the  removal  of  the  Society's  sign.  But  I 


29 

have  no  doubt  he  acted  honestly,  in  the  hope  that 
this  course  might  pacify  the  mob,  and  tend  to  pre 
vent  further  outrage.  For  such  an  error  of  judg 
ment,  it  seems  to  me  most  uncharitable  to  charge 
him  with  being  leagued  with  the  mob. 

The  Mayor  has  been  very  much  blamed  for  not 
taking  the  course  for  suppressing  the  riot  which  is 
directed  by  a  recent  statute.*  I  know  not  what  his 
motive  was  for  this  neglect  of  duty.  I  certainly 
shall  not  attempt  to  justify  it.  Yet,  taking  the  whole 
of  his  conduct  on  the  occasion  into  view,  and  know 
ing  that  he  was,  in  fact,  using  exertion  to  oppose 
and  disperse  the  mob,  it  seems  to  be  absurd  to  con 
tend  that  he  could  feel  any  sympathy  with  a  lawless 
rabble,  who  were  endeavoring  to  prostrate  his  au 
thority. 

In  the  imaginary  dialogue,  Hancock  most  unfairly 
represents  the  Mayor  as  having  betrayed  Mr.  Garri 
son's  escape  from  the  building,  and  thus  induced  the 
crowd  to  pursue  him.  The  charge  is  wholly  ground 
less. 

When  Sheriff  Parkman  stated  to  the  multitude 
that  he  could  not  find  Mr.  Garrison  in  the  building, 
it  was  supposed  by  those  who  saw  Mr.  Garrison 
escape  out  of  the  window  that  he  was  already  safe 
from  pursuit.  The  communication  was  made  for 
the  purpose  of  dispersing  the  crowd.  No  inti 
mation,  I  am  confident,  was  given  by  the  Mayor 
or  Sheriff  Parkman  that  Mr.  Garrison  had  escaped 
from  the  building.  The  conduct  of  the  Mayor  after 
Mr.  Garrison  was  brought  to  his  office  seems  to 

*  See  page  62.  —  ED. 


30 

have  been  dictated  by  an  anxious  desire  to  promote 
his  safety.  His  measures  at  this  time  seem  to  have 
been  in  the  main  prompt  and  judicious.  I  should 
have  preferred  that  Mr.  Garrison  should  have  been 
sent  out  of  town  rather  than  to  the  jail.  But  the 
great  object  of  saving  Mr.  Garrison  was  success 
fully  accomplished.  The  Mayor  is  charged  by  Han 
cock  with  false  imprisonment  of  Mr.  Garrison.  But 
I  believe  Mr.  Garrison  went  voluntarily  to  the 
jail. 

The  conduct  of  the  Mayor  since  the  mob  is  next 
arraigned.  He  is  blamed  for  not  exerting  himself 
to  bring  the  rioters  to  justice.  If  he  is  blame 
worthy  in  this,  it  is  a  blame  which  he  shares  with 
many  other  citizens,  including  some  Abolitionists. 
For  it  is  competent  for  any  citizen  to  prosecute 
these  offenders. 

However,  I  admit  that  the  city  government  is  to 
blame  for  not  having  made  suitable  efforts  to  detect 
the  rioters  and  the  publishers  of  the  handbills.  But 
I  cannot  infer  from  this  that  they  were  friendly  to 
the  mob,  but  merely  that  in  their  opinion  it  is  not 
advisable  for  the  city  government  to  act  on  the  sub 
ject.  Dislike  to  abolition  principles  has  probably 
had  an  influence  in  leading  to  this  conclusion.  Yet 
however  much  I  disapprove  of  the  silence  in  which 
our  city  authorities  have  passed  over  an  enormous 
and  high-handed  violation  of  the  laws,  I  cannot 
conclude  from  thence  that  they  either  encouraged 
or  approved  of  the  riot. 

I  must  conclude.  We  should  be  just  even  to  our 
opponents.  We  should  endeavor  to  judge  charita- 


31 


bly  of  their  conduct,  and  not  ascribe  it  to  the  worst 
possible  motives.  In  looking  at  the  course  which 
they  have  pursued,  we  should  be  ever  on  the  watch 
not  to  be  carried  into  false  judgment  by  party  feel 
ings.  While  truth  compels  us  to  extenuate  nothing 
either  in  friend  or  foe,  we  should  be  equally  careful 

to  "  set  down  naught  in  malice." 

AN  ABOLITIONIST. 
BOSTON,  Saturday,  November  21,  1835. 

No.  VII. 
ACCOUNT  BY  MR.  WILLIAM  L.  GARRISON, 

TO     BE     FOUND     IN     MRS.    STOWED     "MEN     OF     OUR     TIMES." 

As  the  meeting  was  to  commence  at  three  o'clock, 
p.  M.,  I  went  to  the  hall  about  twenty  minutes  before 
that  time.  Perhaps  a  hundred  individuals  had  al 
ready  gathered  around  the  street  door  and  opposite 
to  the  building,  and  their  number  was  rapidly  aug 
menting.  On  ascending  into  the  hall,  I  found  about 
fifteen  or  twenty  ladies  assembled,  sitting  with  se 
rene  countenances,  and  a  crowd  of  noisy  intruders 
(mostly  young  men)  gazing  upon  them,  through 
whom  I  urged  my  way  with  considerable  difficulty. 
"  That 's  Garrison,"  was  the  exclamation  of  some  of 
their  number,  as  I  quietly  took  my  seat.  Perceiv 
ing  that  they  had  no  intention  of  retiring,  I  went 
to  them  and  calmly  saicl,  "  Gentlemen,  perhaps  you 
are  not  aware  that  this  is  a  meeting  of  the  Boston 
Female  Antislavery  Society,  called  and  intended 
exclusively  for  ladies,  and  those  only  who  have 
been  invited  to  address  them.  Understanding  this 


32 


fact,  you  will  not  be  so  rude  or  indecorous  as  to 
thrust  your  presence  upon  this  meeting.     If,  gen 
tlemen"  I   pleasantly  continued,  "any   of  you  are 
ladies  in   disguise,  —  why,  only  apprise  me   of  the 
fact,  give  me  your  names,  and  I  will  introduce  you 
to  the   rest  of  your  sex,  and   you    can  take   seats 
among  them  accordingly."      I  then  sat  down,  and 
for  a  few  moments  their  conduct  was  more  orderly. 
However,  the  stairway  and  upper  door  of  the  hall 
were  soon  densely  filled  with  a  brazen-faced  crew, 
whose  behavior  grew  more  and  more  indecent  and 
outrageous.     Perceiving  that  it  would  be  impracti 
cable  for  me,  or  any  other  person,  to  address  the 
ladies  ;  and  believing,  as  I  was  the  only  male  Aboli 
tionist  in  the  hall,  that  my  presence  would  serve  as 
a  pretext  for  the  mob  to  annoy  the  meeting,  I  held 
a  short  colloquy  with  the  excellent  President  of  the 
Society,  telling  her   that  I  would  withdraw  unless 
she  particularly  desired  me  to  stay.     It  was  her  ear 
nest  wish  that  I  would  retire,  as  well  for  my  own 
safety  as  for  the  peace  of  the  meeting.     She  assured 
me   that  the   Society   would  resolutely   but  calmly 
proceed  to  the  transaction  of  its  business,  and  leave 
the  issue  with  God.     I  left  the  hall  accordingly,  and 
would  have   left  the  building  if  the  staircase    had 
not  been  crowded  to  excess.     This  being  impractica 
ble,  I  retired  into  the  Antislavery  office   (which  is 
separated  from  the  hall  by  a»board  partition),  accom 
panied  by  my  friend,  Mr.  Charles  C.  Burleigh.     It 
was  deemed  prudent  to  lock  the  door,  to  prevent 
the  mob  from  rushing  in  and  destroying  our  publi 
cations. 


33 


In  the  mean  time  the  crowd  in  the  street  had  aug 
mented  from  a  hundred  to  thousands.  The  cry  was 
for  "Thompson!  Thompson!"  But  the  Mayor  had 
now  arrived,  and,  addressing  the  rioters,  he  assured 
them  that  Mr.  Thompson  was  not  in  the  city,  and 
besought  them  to  disperse.  As  well  might  he  have 
attempted  to  propitiate  a  troop  of  ravenous  wolves. 
None  went  away,  but  the  tumult  continued  momen 
tarily  to  increase.  It  was  apparent,  therefore,  that 
the  hostility  of  the  throng  was  not  concentrated  upon 
Mr.  Thompson,  but  that  it  was  as  deadly  against  the 
Society  and  the  Antislavery  cause.  The  fact  is  wor 
thy  of  special  note,  for  it  incontestibly  proves  that 
the  object  of  these  "  respectable  and  influential " 
rioters  was  to  put  down  the  cause  of  Emancipation, 
and  that  the  prejudice  against  Mr.  Thompson  was 
only  a  mere  pretext. 

Notwithstanding  the  presence  and  frantic  behavior 
of  rioters  in  the  hall,  the  meeting  of  the  Society 
was  regularly  called  to  order  by  the  President.  She 
read  a  select  and  appropriate  portion  of  Scripture, 
and  offered  a  fervent  prayer  to  God  for  direction 
and  succor,  and  the  forgiveness  of  enemies  and 
rioters.  It  was  an  awful,  sublime,  and  soul-thrilling 

scene The  clear,  untremulous  tone  of  that 

Christian  heroine  in  prayer  occasionally  awed  the 
ruffians  into  silence,  and  was  heard  distinctly  even 
in  the  midst  of  their  hisses,  yells,  and  curses,  —  for 
they  could  not  long  silently  endure  the  agony  of 
conviction,  and  their  conduct  became  furious.  They 
now  attempted  to  break  down  the  partition,  and  par 
tially  succeeded  ;  but  that  little  band  of  women  still 

5 


34 


maintained  their  ground  unshrinkingly,  and  endeav 
ored  to  transact  their  business. 

An  assault  was  now  made  upon  the  door  of  the 
office,  the  lower  panel  of  which  was  instantly  dashed 
to  pieces.  Stooping  down,  and  glaring  upon  me  as 
I  sat  at  the  desk,  writing  an  account  of  the  riot 
to  a  distant  friend,  the  ruffians  cried  out,  — "  There 
he  is  !  That 's  Garrison  !  Out  with  the  scoundrel ! " 
&c.,  &c.  Turning  to  Mr.  Burleigh,  I  said,  "  You  may 
as  well  open  the  door,  and  let  them  come  in  and  do 
their  worst."  But  he,  with  great  presence  of  mind, 
went  out,  locked  the  door,  put  the  key  into  his 
pocket,  and  by  his  admirable  firmness  succeeded  in 
keeping  the  office  safe. 

Two  or  three  constables  having  cleared  the  hall 
and  staircase  of  the  mob,  the  Mayor  came  in  and 
ordered  the  ladies  to  desist,  assuring  them  that  he 
could  not  any  longer  guarantee  protection,  if  they 
did  not  take  immediate  advantage  of  the  oppor^ 
tunity  to  retire  from  the  building.  Accordingly  they 
adjourned,  to  meet  at  the  house  of  one  of  their  num 
ber,  for  the  completion  of  their  business  ;  but  as  they 
passed  through  the  crowd  they  were  greeted  with 
"taunts,  hisses,  and  cheers  of  mobocratic  triumph, 
from  gentlemen  of  property  and  standing  from  all 
parts  the  city."  Even  their  absence  did  not  dimin 
ish  the  throng.  Thompson  was  not  there,  the  ladies 
were  not  there ;  but  "  Garrison  is  there ! "  was  the 
cry.  "  Garrison !  Garrison !  We  must  have  Garrison ! 
Out  with  him !  Lynch  him ! "  These  and  numberless 
other  exclamations  arose  from  the  multitude. 

For  a  moment  their  attention  was  diverted  from 


35 


me  to  the  Antislavery  sign,  and  they  vociferously 
demanded  its  possession.  It  is  painful  to  state,  that 
the  Mayor  promptly  complied  with  their  demand ! 
So  agitated  and  alarmed  had  he  become,  that  in  very 
weakness  of  spirit  he  ordered  the  sign  to  be  hurled 
to  the  ground,  and  it  was  instantly  broken  in  a  thou 
sand  fragments  by  the  infuriated  populace.  The 
sign  being  demolished,  the  cry  for  Garrison  was  re 
sumed  more  loudly  than  ever.  It  was  now  apparent 
that  the  multitude  would  not  disperse  till  I  left  the 
building,  and  as  an  egress  out  of  the  front  door  was 
impossible,  the  Mayor  and  some  of  his  assistants,  as 
well  as  some  of  my  friends,  earnestly  besought  me 
to  escape  in  the  rear  of  the  building. 

Preceded  by  my  faithful  and  beloved  friend,  J.  R. 
C.,  I  dropped  from  a  back  window  on  to  a  shed, 
and  narrowly  escaped  falling  headlong  to  the  ground. 
We  entered  into  a  carpenter's  shop,  through  which 
we  attempted  to  get  into  Wilson's  Lane,  but  found 
our  retreat  cut  off  by  the  mob.  They  raised  a  shout 
as  soon  as  we  came  in  sight ;  but  the  proprietor 
promptly  closed  the  door  of  his  shop,  kept  them  at 
bay  for  a  time,  and  thus  kindly  afforded  me  an 
opportunity  to  find  some  other  passage.  I  told  Mr. 
C.  it  would  be  futile  to  attempt  to  escape, — I  would 
go  out  to  the  mob,  and  let  them  deal  with  me  as 
they  might  elect ;  but  he  thought  it  was  my  duty  to 
avoid  them  as  long  as  possible.  We  then  went  up 
stairs,  and,  finding  a  vacancy  in  one  corner  of  the 
room,  I  got  into  it,  and  he  and  a  young  lad  piled 
up  some  boards  in  front  of  me  to  shield  me  from 
observation.  In  a  few  minutes  several  ruffians  broke 


36 


into  the  chamber,  who  seized  Mr.  C.  in  a  rough  man 
ner,  and  led  him  out  to  the  view  of  the  mob,  saying, 
"  This  is  not  Garrison,  but  Garrison's  and  Thompson's 
friend,  and  he  says  he  knows  where  Garrison  is,  but 
won't  tell."  Then  a  shout  of  exultation  was  raised 
by  the  mob,  and  what  became  of  him  I  do  not  know; 
though,  as  I  was  immediately  discovered,  I  presume 
he  escaped  without  material  injury.  On  seeing  me, 
three  or  four  of  the  rioters,  uttering  a  yell,  furiously 
dragged  me  to  the  window,  with  the  intention  of 
hurling  me  from  that  height  to  the  ground;  but  one 
of  them  relented,  and  said,  "  Don't  let  us  kill  him 
outright."  So  they  drew  me  back,  and  coiled  a  rope 
about  my  body,  —  probably  to  drag  me  through  the 
streets.  I  bowed  to  the  mob,  and,  requesting  them 
to  wait  patiently  until  I  could  descend,  went  down 
upon  a  ladder  that  was  raised  for  that  purpose.  I 
fortunately  extricated  myself  from  the  rope,  and 
was  seized  by  two  or  three  of  the  leading  rioters, 
powerful  and  athletic  men,  by  whom  I  was  dragged 
along  bareheaded  (for  my  hat  had  been  knocked  off 
and  cut  in  pieces  on  the  spot),  a  friendly  voice  in 
the  crowd  shouting,  "  He  sha'n't  be  hurt !  He  is  an 
American ! "  This  seemed  to  excite  sympathy  in 
the  breasts  of  some  others,  and  they  reiterated  the 
same  cry.  Blows,  however,  were  aimed  at  my 
head  by  such  as  were  of  a  cruel  spirit,  and  at  last 
they  succeeded  in  tearing  nearly  all  my  clothes 
from  my  body.  Thus  was  I  dragged  through  Wil 
son's  Lane  into  State  Street,  in  the  rear  of  the  City 
Hall. 

They  proceeded  with  me  in  the  direction  of  the 


37 


City  Hall,  the  cry  being  raised,  "  To  the  Common  ! " 
whether  to  give  me  a  coat  of  tar  and  feathers  or  to 
throw  me  into  the  pond  was  problematical.  As  we 
approached  the  south  door,  the  Mayor  attempted  to 
protect  me  by  his  presence  ;  but  as  he  was  unassist 
ed  by  any  show  of  authority  or  force,  he  was  quickly 
thrust  aside  ;  and  now  came  a  tremendous  rush  on 
the  part  of  the  mob  to  prevent  my  entering  the 
hall.  For  a  time  the  conflict  was  desperate ;  but  at 
length  a  rescue  was  effected  by  a  posse  that  came  to 
the  help  of  the  Mayor,  by  whom  I  was  carried  up 
to  the  Mayor's  room. 

In  view  of  my  denuded  condition,  one  individual 
in  the  Post-Office  below  stairs  kindly  lent  me  a  pair 
of  pantaloons,  another  a  coat,  a  third  a  stock,  a 
fourth  a  cap,  &c.  After  a  brief  consultation,  the 
mob  densely  surrounding  and  threatening  the  City 
Hall  and  Post-Office,  the  Mayor  and  his  advisers 
said  that  my  life  depended  on  committing  me  to 
jail,  ostensibly  as  a  disturber  of  the  peace.  Accord 
ingly  a  hack  was  got  ready  at  the  door,  and  I  was 
put  into  it,  supported  by  Sheriff  Parkman  and 
Ebenezer  Bailey,  the  Mayor  leading  the  way.  And 
now  ensued  a  scene  which  baffles  all  description. 
As  the  ocean,  lashed  to  fury  by  a  storm,  seeks  to 
whelm  a  bark  beneath  the  waves,  so  did  the  mob, 
enraged  at  their  disappointment,  rush  like  a  whirl 
wind  upon  the  frail  vehicle  in  which  I  sat,  and 
endeavored  to  drag  me  out  of  it.  Escape  seemed 
a  physical  impossibility.  They  clung  to  the  wheels, 
dashed  open  the  doors,  seized  hold  of  the  horses, 
and  tried  to  upset  the  carriage.  They  were,  how- 


38 


ever,  vigorously  repulsed  by  the  police,  a  constable 
sprang  in  by  my  side,  the  doors  were  closed,  and 
the  driver,  using  his  whip  on  the  bodies  of  the 
horses  and  the  heads  of  the  rioters,  happily  made 
an  opening  through  the  crowd,  and  drove  with  all 
speed  to  Leverett  Street. 

In  a  few  moments  I  was  locked  up  in  a  cell,  safe 
from  my  persecutors,  accompanied  by  two  delightful 
associates, —  a  good  conscience  and  a  cheerful  mind. 


Now  to  consider  the  original  charge,  — 

A.  That  the  Mayor  meanly  entreated  the  rioters 
to  obey  the  laws. 

Mr.  Phillips  is  extremely  vague  in  his  accusation. 
He  says  (No.  II.)  he  was  himself  in  Washington 
Street,  but  does  not  mention  the  time,  nor  does  he 
say  where  the  Mayor  was  when  these  degrading 
pleadings  were  uttered.  Such  obscurity  is  charac 
teristic  of  bad  testimony  the  world  over. 

From  the  accounts  already  introduced,  it  is  plain 
that  the  Mayor  was  either  in  the  entry  of  the  Anti- 
slavery  building  or  on  the  steps  of  the  Old  State 
House,  and  in  either  case  a  person  in  Washington 
Street  might  have  seen  and  heard  him.  He  was  for 
a  long  time  in  the  entry  of  the  Antislavery  build 
ing,  but,  in  his  own  account,  there  is  no  mention  of 
an  address  to  the  crowd,  beyond  the  statement  that 
"Thompson  was  not  in  town"  (page  17).  The  fol 
lowing  letter  contains  an  important  allusion  to  this 
point. 


39 


No.  VIII. 

LETTER  FROM  MR.  HENRY  GUILD*  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

Having  read  the  controversy  in  the  papers  be 
tween  yourself  and  Mr.  Phillips,  and  having  been  an 
eyewitness  to  the  circumstances  referred  to,  and  a 
convert  to  the  Antislavery  cause  from  that  date,  I 
believe  I  can  bear  witness  to  your  father's  efforts  to 
subdue  the  mob  and  rescue  Mr.  Garrison. 
.  My  impression  is  that  the  Riot  Act  was  read  under 
the  windows  of  the  Antislavery  rooms ;  at  any  rate, 
I  recollect  distinctly  your  father  warning  the  mob  to 
disperse  ;  this  was  before  the  seizure  of  Mr.  Garri 
son,  who  was  taken  from  Wilson's  Lane,  with  a  rope 
around  his  body  (not  around  his  neck,  as  has  been 
often  stated),  and  carried  up  State  Street,  on  the 
north  side,  and  down  on  the  south  side  of  the  Old 
State  House ;  and  it  was  on  the  way  down,  and  near 
the  old  pump  that  the  police  force,  not  more  than 
ten  or  fifteen  men,  made  a  raid  upon  the  mob  and 
took  him  from  them. 

I  could  not  say  what  part  your  father  took  in  the 
arrest  of  Mr.  Garrison  from  the  mob,  but  I  was 
informed,  shortly  after,  that  Mr.  Garrison,  in  relating 
his  experience  in  a  public  meeting,  stated  that  he 
never  was  so  glad  to  get  into  a  jail  in  his  life.  I 
think  your  father  did  all  that  lay  in  his  power,  with 
a  mere  handful  of  men  at  his  command ;  and 
although,  as  I  said  before,  I  am,  and  have  been,  an 
Antislavery  man,  I  am  also  a  lover  of  justice. 

*  Manufacturing  Jeweller,  Winter  Street. 


40 


These  few  recollections  have  been  scratched  down 
hastily.  I  could  give  you  a  more  extended  and 
particular  account  if  you  should  think  it  worth 
while  to  call  upon  me. 

BOSTON,  November  13,  1869. 


Mr.  Guild  was  then  a  clerk  of  Mr.  Quincy  Tufts,  in 
a  neighboring  store,  and  he  ran  out  to  see  what  was 
going  on.  He  says,  "  I  recollect  distinctly  your  father 
warning  the  mob  to  disperse;  this  was  before  the 
seizure  of  Mr.  Garrison,"  therefore  it  was  while  the 
Mayor  was  in  or  near  the  entry  of  the  building,  and 
it  was  (perhaps)  while  Mr.  Phillips  was  hanging  his 
head  with  shame ;  which  act  seems  to  be  the  only 
support  he  gave  to  the  law  and  the  authorities 
on  that  important  occasion.  Such  men  as  Colonel 
Sever  ran  in  and  took  rioters  by  the  collar ;  but  Mr. 
Phillips  hung  his  head. 

But  perhaps  the  entreating  "  almost  on  his  knees  " 
took  place  later,  at  the  Old  State  House.  The 
Mayor  writes,  "  I  said  in  substance  that  the  law  must 
be  maintained,  the  order  of  the  city  preserved,  and 
that  I  would  lay  down  my  life  on  that  spot  to  effect 
these  objects "  (page  22).  The  following  letters 
bear  directly  on  this  point. 


41 


No.  IX. 

LETTER  FROM  MR.   JOHN   H.   THORNDIKE*  TO   THE 
EDITOR. 

In  this  morning's  Advertiser  is  a  letter  over  the 
signature  of  Mr.  Wendell  Phillips,  which  contains 
such  gross  misstatements  as  to  what  occurred  at  the 
time  of  the  "  Garrison  Mob,"  that  I  am  impelled  to 
write  you  what  I  know  upon  the  subject.  I  would 
not  say  that  Mr.  Phillips  intentionally  says  that 
which  is  not  true,  for  it  is  fair  to  suppose  that  one  of 
his  excitable  temperament,  and  taking  the  part  which 
he  did  in  the  antislavery  movement  at  that  time, 
neither  "  saw  "  nor  "  heard  "  correctly.  Upon  the 
afternoon  of  that  day,  as  I  was  walking  down  Wash 
ington  Street,  on  the  way  to  my  office  in  State  Street, 
I  saw,  when  near  Joy's  Building,  a  large  crowd  of 
people,  and  curiosity  led  me  on  to  the  corner  of 
Court  Street.  I  asked  a  laborer  there  what  the  mat 
ter  was ;  he  answered  that  there  were  two  or  three 
men  up  there  preaching  to  a  lot  of  women  about 
slavery.  I  went  a  little  farther,  and  found  myself 
next  to  Mr.  John  L.  Dimmock,  who  appeared  to  be 
doing  what  he  could  to  allay  the  excitement  which 
was  momentarily  increasing.  Men  had  crowded  up 
the  stairs  of  the  building  where  the  meeting  was 
held,  and  there  was  much  loud  talk  by  some  of  them 
in  the  mob.  Cries  were  distinctly  heard,  "  Tear  down 
the  sign ! "  Mr.  Dimmock  said  to  two  men  whom  he 

*  Lately  President  of  the  Water  Board. 
6 


42 


spoke  to  as  if  he  knew  them,  "  You  had  better  take 
in  that  sign,"  and  very  soon  one  or  both  of  them 
were  at  work  doing  it.  When  this  was  done  I  set 
out  again  for  my  office,  and  just  as  I  reached  the 
last  corner  of  the  Old  State  House  there  was  a  rush 
of  some  dozen  men  close  together  from  Wilson's 
Lane,  and  in  their  midst  a  bareheaded  man  with  a 
rope  round  his  neck.  Instantly  others  surrounded 
them,  most  of  whom  appeared  to  be  well-disposed 
citizens,  crying  out,  "  Don't  hurt  him,"  and  directed 
the  bareheaded  man  (who  I  afterwards  learned  was 
Mr.  Garrison)  to  the  south  door  of  the  Old  State 
House.  Your  father,  Mayor  Lyman,  met  them  at 
the  door  with  only  one  or  two  on  either  side  of  him, 
and  under  his  direction  Mr.  Garrison  was  passed  up 
stairs.  When  the  most  excited  of  those  present 
tried  to  follow,  he  pressed  them  back,  declaring  in  a 
clear  and  loud  voice,  "  You  can  go  no  farther,  and 
any  man  who  passes  here  will  have  to  pass  over  my 
dead  body."  Upon  this,  satisfaction  was  manifested 
by  cheers  and  clapping  of  hands.  He  came  in  a 
moment  after  to  the  window  over  the  entrance  and 
again  spoke  to  those  remaining,  asking  them  as  good 
citizens  to  disperse,  which  they  did.  From  that 
time  I  have  had  the  highest  respect  for  your  father, 
standing  there  as  he  did,  almost  alone,  fearing  no 
one  and  caring  for  no  one,  bearing  on  his  counte 
nance  and  in  the  energy  of  his  manner  a  determina 
tion  to  protect  the  man  and  maintain  the  peace. 

BOSTON,  November  6,  1869. 


43 


No.  X. 

LETTER    FROM    MR.    OTIS    CLAPP*    TO    THE    EDITOR. 

The  reading  of  your  letter  this  morning  on  the 
"  Garrison  Mob "  revived  -my  recollections  of  the 
scene. 

I  happened  to  be  standing  on  the  south  corner  of 
State  and  Washington  Streets  when  the  mob  came 
up  Washington  Street,  with  General  Lyman  and  his 
officers  surrounding  Mr.  Garrison,  who  turned  him 
into  State  Street,  and  up  the  steps  into  the  Old  State 
House  (then  the  City  Hall),  when  the  door  was 
closed  and  guarded.  This  action  produced  great 
excitement  among  the  mob,  which  increased  in  fury 
each  moment,  and  threatened  to  break  down  the 
door.  Soon  after,  General  Lyman  stepped  through 
the  window  on  the  roof  over  the  door  through 
which  they  had  entered  City  Hall,  and  addressed 
the  multitude. 

He  asked  all  to  aid  in  keeping  the  peace,  and 
advised  all  to  quietly  retire.  The  laws,  he  said,  so 
far  as  rested  upon  him,  must  and  should  be  obeyed, 
if  he  died  in  the  attempt ;  or  words  to  this  effect. 

His  figure,  as  he  then  appeared,  when  he  straight 
ened  himself  up  and  spoke,  is  impressed  upon  my 
mind  as  though  it  was  within  a  year,  and  the  fire 
with  which  he  declared  his  determination  rings  in 
my  ears  to  this  day.  The  effect  upon  the  multitude 
was  electric,  and  all  was  hushed  for  some  moments  ; 

*  United  States  Assessor. 


44 


when  parties  began  to  gather  in  quiet  groups,  and 
talk  over  the  matter. 

I  watched  this  transaction  with  intense  interest, 
as  it  was  my  first  lesson  in  the  management  of 
mobs;  and  I  have  always  felt  that  General  Lyman's 
action  in  this  matter  was  in  the  highest  degree 
manly  and  courageous. 

As  there  are  not  many  living  witnesses  of  this 
scene,  I  presume,  it  has  seemed  to  me  well  to  say 
thus  much  upon  the  subject. 

BOSTON,  November  3,  1859. 

No.  XL 

LETTER  FROM  COL.  JAMES  W.  SEVER  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

I  take  great  pleasure  in  stating  to  you  in  writing, 
at  your  request,  the  substance  of  a  verbal  commu 
nication  made  to  you  a  few  days  since  in  reference 
to  the  "  Garrison  Kiot,"  so  called,  which  occurred  in 
this  city  on  the  21st  day  of  October,  1835. 

Passing  down  State  Street  on  the  afternoon  of  that 
day,  I  encountered  a  large  mass  of  people  coming 
round  the  eastern  end  of  the  Old  State  House  from 
the  direction  of  Wilson's  Lane,  having  in  custody 
William  L.  Garrison,  in  his  shirt-sleeves,  and  without 
a  hat,  having  a  rope  around  his  waist. 

As  they  turned  towards  Washington  Street  they 
were  met  by  the  Mayor  and  a  force  of  constables. 
At  this  moment  the  cry  was  raised,  "  To  the  Frog 
Pond  with  him ! "  followed  by  an  appeal  to  the  by 
standers  to  assist  the  Mayor,  when,  among  many 


45 


others,  the  late  Colonel  Thomas  C.  Amory  and  my 
self  aided  in  the  rescue  of  Mr.  Garrison  from  the 
crowd,  and  in  placing  him  within  the  south  door  of 
the  Old  State  House,  which  was  at  once  closed. 

Immediately  afterwards  the  Mayor  appeared  at 
an  open  window  over  the  door,  from  which  he  ear 
nestly  addressed  the  excited  populace,  advising  and 
commanding  them  to  disperse  and  go  peaceably  to 
their  homes,  —  avowing  his  determination  to  main 
tain  the  peace  of  the  city  at  all  hazards,  and  notify 
ing  them  in  the  most  emphatic  terms  that,  if  any 
attempt  should  be  made  to  force  an  entry  to  the 
building,  it  should  be  done  only  over  his  body. 

At  the  close  of  his  address  he  was  heartily  and 
very  generally  cheered. 

An  intimation  having  been  given  by  some  of 
the  constables  to  those  who  had  aided  the  authori 
ties  that  a  carriage  had  been  ordered  to  the  north 
door,  and  that  assistance  might  be  required  there, 
we  immediately  repaired  to  that  point,  where  we 
found  the  constables  in  the  act  of  putting  Mr.  Gar 
rison  in  a  carriage,  and  the  crowd  rapidly  increas 
ing,  and  endeavoring  to  prevent  it,  some  trying  to 
overturn  the  carriage,  large  numbers  hanging  on  to 
the  wheels  and  calling  out  to  "  Cut  the  traces  !  cut  the 
reins  1 "  An  individual  drew  his  knife  and  made  an 
attempt  to  do  this,  when  he  was  seized  by  myself 
and  thrust  aside.  The  driver  effectually  applied 
his  whip,  and  with  difficulty  succeeded  in  breaking 
away,  when  he  drove  rapidly  up  Court  Street  to 
the  jail,  followed  by  the  mob. 

I  have  delayed  this  communication  in  the  hope  of 


46 


finding  the  letter  which  I  addressed  to  my  father,  in 
which,  on  the  evening  of  this  day,  I  gave  a  minute 
account  of  the  events  and  occurrences  of  the  day, 
"  quorum  parva  pars  fui"  ;  but  I  have  not  been  able 
to  put  my  hand  upon  it. 

I  have,  however,  a  most  vivid  recollection  of 
these  occurrences  as  I  have  narrated  them,  and  no 
one  could  have  witnessed  them  without  the  convic 
tion  that  the  utmost  coolness,  good  judgment,  and 
intrepidity  were  conspicuously  exhibited  by  General 
Lyman  on  that  occasion,  and  that  he  fully  met  all 
the  claims  upon  him  as  the  Chief  Magistrate  of  a 
great  city. 

BOSTON,  February  1,  1870. 

Now  here  are  three  persons  who  write  of  their 
own  prompting  and  without  collusion,  twenty  years 
after  Mr.  Lyman's  death,  and  who  never  read  the 
private  manuscript  quoted  above ;  yet  they  all  'con 
firm  his  words  in  a  remarkable  manner. 

In  the  face  of  this  testimony,  Mr.  Phillips  would 
have  us  believe  that  this  Magistrate  did,  in  that  very 
hour,  at  some  place  not  designated,  employ  servile 
pleadings  with  these  same  rioters.  About  a  matter 
so  distinct  in  itself,  such  opposite  statements  are 
not  to  be  reconciled  by  attributing  them  to  faults 
of  memory  or  of  hearing.  Either,  then,  Mr.  Phillips 
bears  false  witness  against  his  neighbor,  or  these 
three  persons  have,  without  previous  consultation, 
all  told  exactly  the  same  falsehood.  The  reader  is 
at  liberty  to  render  judgment  on  the  evidence. 


47 


Charge  B.  That  the  Mayor  never  sought  to  com 
mand  the  mob,  nor  did  he  issue  any  order. 

Colonel  Sever  (No.  XL)  expressly  says,  "com 
manding  them  to  disperse  and  go  peaceably  to  their 
homes  " ;  and  the  words  and  spirit  of  the  other  docu 
ments  (Nos.  IX.,  X.,  &c.)  fully  bear  out  this  expres 
sion.  In  the  Liberator  of  November,  1835,  "Another 
Abolitionist"  says,  "He  declared  that  the  law  should 
be  supported,  if  it  cost  him  his  life,  and  ordered  them 
[the  rabble]  to  disperse."  Mr.  Phillips  (No.  II.)  says, 
"Had  he  issued  one  command,  even  one  that  was 
disobeyed,  I  should  have  honored  him."  I  hereby 
call  on  Mr.  Phillips  publicly  to  make  good  this  his 
written  promise  ! 

Charge  C.  That  he  consented,  if  he  did  not  assist, 
at  tearing  down  the  Antistavery  sign  and  throwing  it 
to  the  mob,  to  propitiate  its  rage. 

That  the  sign  was  taken  down  and  thrown  to  the 
mob  and  broken  up  are  facts  needing  no  proof; 
that  the  Mayor  ordered  the  sign  to  be  taken  down  I 
do  not  deny,  for  he  expressly  says,  "I  sent  a  person 
to  see  if  this  sign  could  be  taken  into  the  room  from 
the  window,"  &c.  (No.  Y.  page  20);  but  that  he  or 
dered  it  thrown  to  the  mob,  or  consented  thereto,  is 
a  petty  and  malignant  supposition  which  can  only 
be  admitted  on  the  most  emphatic  evidence.  The 
newspaper  sentences  quoted  in  No.  IV.  are  no  evi 
dence  ;  such  reports  are  only  hearsay.  The  testi 
mony  of  Mr.  L.  B.  Marsh  does  not  touch  the  point. 
Even  supposing  that  Mr.  Harry  Williams  removed 
the  sign  and  spoke  those  exact  words,  they  do  not 
convey 'the  meaning  that  the  Mayor  ordered  the 


48 


sign  thrown  down.  Those  who  remember  Mr.  Wil 
liams  as  well  as  I  do  will  be  inclined  to  smile  at 
seeing  a  person  of  his  singularly  eccentric  and  "  in 
dependent  "  character  quoted  as  one  who  would  be 
likely  to  do  as  he  was  "  directed."  Mr.  J.  B.  Palmer 
reports  the  words  of  Williams  thus,  "  By  order  of  the 
Mayor  the  sign  would  be  removed" ;  and  this  state 
ment  (by  whomever  uttered)  was  a  correct  one.  He 
did  order  the  sign  taken  into  the  room,  for  sensible 
reasons  referred  to  in  the  passage  above  ;  and  Mr. 
Phillips  is  shooting  at  rovers  when  he  brings  an 
array  of  witnesses  to  prove  a  point  that  nobody 
denies. 

What  I  offered  to  prove  was  (No.  III.)  that  the 
Mayor  "  did  not  assist  in,  or  consent  to,  the  throwing 
of  the  sign  to  the  mob"  Mr.  N.  B.  Chamberlain 
(No.  IV.)  reports  that  he  and  Harry  Williams  met 
the  Mayor  on  the  steps  of  the  Old  State  House,  and 
that  the  latter,  u  agitated  and  in  fearful  doubt,"  con 
sented  to  have  the  sign  taken  down.  This  report 
may  be  summarily  dealt  with.  He  says  he  saw  and 
talked  with  the  Mayor  on  the  steps  of  the  Old  State 
House.  If  so,  he  talked  with  what  the  demonologists 
call  a  "vicarious  image,"  because  Mr.  Lyman  was 
not  there.  As  Mr.  Phillips  and  Mr.  Garrison,  both 
principal  parties  in  this  dispute,  have  called  them 
selves  into  court  as  witnesses  (Nos.  II.,  IV.)  it  is 
proper  that  another  principal  should  be  heard.  The 
Mayor  may  justly  be  supposed  to  know  where  he 
was  on  that  day ;  and,  since  he  had  no  motive  for 
falsehood  in  this  particular  case,  his  word  should 
have  authority.  He  says  (page  18),  "  Up  to  this 


49 


time  I  had  left  my  position  on  the  staircase  but  once  " 
(to  confer  with  the  women);  and  again  (page  19), 
"  I  returned  to  my  position  at  the  bottom  of  the 
staircase,  in  the  passage-way,  which  I  did  not  again 
quit  till  the  mob  rushed  up  Washington  Street." 
That  is  to  say,  he  was  constantly  in  the  Antislavery 
building  from  the  outset  of  the  riot  until  Garrison 
was  taken ;  which  period,  of  course,  includes  that 
referred  to  by  Mr.  Chamberlain.  Evidently,  then, 
Mr.  Chamberlain  talked  to  somebody  whom  he 
mistook  for  the  Mayor.  Mr.  John  H.  Thorndike 
(No.  IX.)  testifies  that  Mr.  John  L.  Dimmock  really 
played  the  leading  part,  and  said,  "  You  had  better 
take  in"  (not  throw  down)  "that  sign."  Mr.  Garri 
son  (page  34)  says  the  Mayor  was  so  alarmed  that, 
in  very  weakness  of  spirit,  he  ordered  the  sign 
hurled  to  the  rioters.  Unfortunately,  Mr.  Garrison 
was  just  then  hiding  in  the  garret,  and  so  his  testi 
mony  is  nothing ;  but  Mr.  Sewall,  who  uses  the 
measured  language  of  a  trained  lawyer,  says  (page 
28)  Mr.  Lyman  sanctioned  the  removal,  which  is  the 
exact  truth. 

In  fact,  the  case  is  simple  enough  to  any  person 
of  common  sense.  The  Mayor  deemed  it  wise  to 
take  the  sign  into  the  room ;  he  sent  somebody  (no 
matter  whether  Williams  or  not)  to  do  it ;  this  per 
son,  either  from  folly  or  because  others  interfered, 
(and  this  again  is  of  no  consequence,)  threw  the 
board  into  the  street. 

To  live  in  1870  and  to  look  back  with  a  clear  eye 
to  1835  is  difficult.  Consider  the  position  of  a  good 
citizen  in  1835.  Slavery  existed,  and  it  is  the  great- 

7 


50 


est  mistake  to  think  it  was  not  then  lamented  as  an 
evil  and  a  sin.  But  the  question  was  how  to  get 
rid  of  it  The  wise  said :  If  we  open  the  question, 
the  master  will  strain  the  negro's  bonds  tighter ;  if 
we  persist,  there  will  be  civil  war,  and  that  is  a 
horror  with  which  no  one  has  a  right  to  charge  his 
conscience. 

And  what  is  to-day  the  fact  of  history  ?  It  has 
pleased  God  to  lead  us  to  liberty  over  the  dead 
bodies  of  half  a  million  men.  Were  our  fathers 
weak  tremblers  because  they  shrunk  from  giving 
their  children  to  the  sword  ?  They  could  not  know 
that  war  would  bring  about  liberty.  Therefore 
they  deprecated  agitation,  when  there  was  no  good 
plan  for  action.  And  in  so  doing  they  were  right,  — 
absolutely  right!  And  the  Extremists,  who  went 
beyond  patient  argument  and  charitable  thought, 
were  wrong. 

When  we  were  brought  to  the  terrible  pass  of 
civil  war,  the  sober-minded  and  prudent,  —  in  fact, 
the  men  of  action,  —  seeing  the  inevitable  upon 
them,  rose  in  their  might,  and  they  —  and  they 
alone  —  fought  the  good  fight  and  saved  the  Union 
and  freed  the  slave.  If  any  one  doubts  this,  let 
him  think  of  the  names  of  Grant,  Meade,  Sherman, 
Thomas,  Sheridan  ;  of  Lincoln,  Seward,  Stanton,  Fes- 
senden,  Adams,  Andrew.  And  let  him  find,  if  he 
can,  the  name  of  an  Extremist  who  really  DID  any 
thing  notable  in  the  struggle. 

Charge  D.  That  he  broke  his  pledge  made  to  the 
Female  Antislavery  Society  ? 

This,  in  its  vagueness,  reminds  one  of  the  cele- 


51 


brated  accusation  hurled  by  Dr.  Johnson  against  the 
fishwoman,  that  "she  kept  an  isosceles  triangle  in 
her  back  garret."  We  may  pass  over  this  charge, 
until  it  gets  its  specifications. 

Charge  E.     That  he  ordered  said  Society  to  dis 
perse. 

Mr.  Phillips  (No.  II.)  and  Mr.  Garrison  (page  34) 
say  he  ordered  the  meeting  to  disperse.  Neither  of 
them  saw  anything.  Mr.  Phillips  was  hanging  his 
head,  on  the  pavement ;  Mr.  Garrison  was  seeking  a 
refuge  in  the  upper  story.  Mr.  Sewall  (page  28) 
says  he  u  urged  the  ladies  to  retire,"  and,  as  a  warm 
friend  of  Mr.  Garrison  and  a  man  of  high  integrity, 
we  may  safely  assume  that  he  was  at  pains  to  find 
out  the  truth.  Mr.  Lyman  (the  only  witness  pres 
ent)  agrees  to  Mr.  Se wall's  account,  and  says  (page 
17)  that  he  went  up  stairs  to  advise  them  to  with 
draw  ;  and,  further  on,  "  The  women  seemed  very 
willing  to  leave  the  room.  I  heard  no  objection  ex 
pressed,  beyond  the  remark  already  mentioned,  in 
regard  to  martyrdom"  (page  18). 

There  is  nothing  hard  to  understand  in  all  this. 
Here  were  a  score  of  women  in  a  room ;  the  street 
was  filled  by  a  noisy  and  threatening  mob  ;  night 
was  coming  on ;  at  any  moment  stones  might  be 
thrown  through  the  windows,  or  an  attempt  might 
be  made  to  force  the  doors.  Was  it  not,  in  such  a 
case,  the  part  of  a  considerate  gentleman  to  ad 
vise  and  urge  women  to  withdraw  ?  And  was  it 
not  a  sensible  thing  in  them  to  seek  a  place  of 
safety  ? 

Charge  F.     That  he  had  ample  means  to  control 


52 


the  mob,  and  should  have  shot  ten  men  ;  but  did  not 
control,  and  did  not  shoot 

This  charge  may  best  be  considered  under  two 
heads,  —  (a)  the  means  to  control  the  mob;  (6)  the 
propriety  of  shooting  ten  men. 

The  means  of  controlling  mobs  are  the  police  and 
the  military.  In  1835  Boston  had  no  police,  as  we  now 
understand  that  word.  There  were  about  thirty  night 
watchmen  who  went  on  duty  for  alternate  nights, 
making  some  sixty  men  in  all.  They  were  under 
the  orders  of  the  Captain  of  the  Watch,  who  was  an 
officer  independent  of  the  City  Marshal.  During 
the  day  they  pursued  their  callings,  most  of  them 
being  teamsters  or  truckmen ;  and  it  was  only  at 
night,  when  they  reported  for  duty  at  their  watch- 
houses,  that  they  could  be  certainly  counted  on. 
When  the  Mayor  says  (page  23)  that  he  had  "all 
the  watch  on  the  alert,"  he  means  that  the  whole  of 
the  men,  instead  of  one  half,  were  put  on  duty  dur 
ing  the  night  of  the  riot.  Of  day  patrolmen  there 
were  none  ;  but  there  were  fifteen  constables  who 
had  offices  in  the  city,  and  who  gained  their  living 
by  keeping  order  in  the  courts,  serving  subpoenas, 
writs  of  ejectment,  and  the  like.  Of  these  there 
were  five  who  were  generally,  but  not  always,  em 
ployed  by  the  city  to  patrol  the  disorderly  quarters 
during  the  day.  They  were  under  the  orders  of  the 
City  Marshal,  who,  in  1832,  had  been  authorized  to 
command  all  "  constables  in  the  service  of  the  city." 
It  is  fair  to  assume  that  the  Mayor  could,  at  any 
time,  send  for  these  five  men  during  the  day ;  but, 
beyond  them,  he  had  to  rely,  in  sudden  emergencies, 


53 


on  such  of  the  ordinary  constables  as  could  be 
found,  and  were  not  too  old  for  duty,  and  on  such 
of  the  night  watchmen  as  could  be  found,  and  were 
willing  to  leave  their  work. 

In  1835  the  population  of  Boston  was  78,603,  and 
the  available  day  police  was  six  men,  including  the 
City  Marshal.  In  1869  the  population,  within  the 
old  limits,  was  not  far  from  200,000,  and  the  regular 
police,  exclusive  of  constables,  about  four  hundred 
and  fifty  men,  all  well  armed,  and  subjected  to  a  mili 
tary  discipline  under  their  captains,  lieutenants,  and 
sergeants.* 

The  reader  will  now  understand  the  words  of  the 
Mayor  (page  18),  when  he  says  he  had  "  no  means  of 
procuring  an  additional  force  till  after  dark." 

The  following  letter  will  be  found  to  refer  inci 
dentally  to  the  police  of  that  time. 

No.  XII 

LETTER   FROM   HON.   JOSTAH   QUINCY   TO   THE 
EDITOR. 

I  herewith,  at  your  request,  send  an  extract  from 
my  journal  of  Wednesday  the  21st  of  October, 
1835:- 

"  Forenoon  at  office.  In  the  afternoon  a  mob  as 
sembled  in  order  to  prevent  a  meeting  of  the  Female 
Antislavery  Society.  No  great  outrages  were  com 
mitted,  although,  when  I  saw  Garrison  in  the  hands 
of  the  mob,  I  feared  he  might  be  seriously  injured, 

*  Some  of  these  details  will  be  found  in  the  entertaining  little  book 
by  Captain  E.  H.  Savage,  "  Police  Recollections." 


54 


as  he  would  have  been  had  it  not  been  for  the 
prompt  and  spirited  interference  of  Mr.  Lyman,  the 

Mayor Went  down  twice  in  the  evening  to 

tender  my  services  to  the  Mayor,  but  they  were  not 
needed." 

On  that  afternoon  I  was  at  my  office.  No.  27  State 
Street,  which  commanded  a  view  of  the  entire  length 
of  Wilson's  Lane :  my  attention  was  attracted  by  the 
shouts  of  a  multitude.  On  going  to  my  window  I 
saw  a  crowd  approaching,  with  Mr.  Garrison  in  its 
midst.  As  I  was  President  of  the  Council,  I  rushed 
down  and  forced  myself  into  his  immediate  vicinity, 
and  remained  at  his  side  until  he  was  placed  in  a 
carriage,  and  drove  off.  My  opinion  of  the  action  of 
your  father  is  stated  as  above,  in  the  record  I  made 
on  the  same  evening. 

In  judging  of  the  situation  of  the  Mayor,  it  should 
be  remembered,  that  the  action  of  the  mob  was 
unexpected  ;  that  the  whole  police  force  at  that  time 
consisted  of  a  few  superannuated  constables,  whose 
principal  duty  was  to  attend  the  courts  ;  and  the 
night  watchmen  who  were  not  on  duty.  As  to  call 
ing  out  the  militia,  he  had  no  time  to  do  it,  even  if 
it  had  been  advisable,  which  it  was  not.  Fears  were 
entertained  that  there  would  be  another  outbreak  at 
night,  and  a  number  of  citizens  enrolled  themselves 
as  special  constables  and  reported  during  the  even 
ing  to  the  Mayor  for  orders,  which,  fortunately,  he 
was  not  obliged  to  give. 

No  one  who  knew  your  father  as  I  did  could  ever 
have  suspected  him  of  a  want  of  energy,  spirit,  or 


courage. 


BOSTON,  January  7,  1870. 


55 


Mr.  Guild  (No.  VIII.)  speaks  of  the  force  that 
rescued  Garrison  as  "  not  more  than  ten  or  fifteen 
men/'  and  these  embraced  the  Mayor,  the  Sheriff,  the 
City  Marshal,  and  apparently  some  citizen  volun 
teers  (not,  however,  including  Mr.  Wendell  Phillips). 
If  this  force  was  "  ample  "  to  control  two  or  three 
streets  full  of  angry  people,  it  is  quite  clear  that  our 
present  day  police  is  conducted  on  an  extravagant 
scale,  and  should  at  once  be  reduced  to  thirteen 
patrolmen,  which  would  be  the  relative  proportion 
to  the  population. 

(6.)  The  propriety  of  shooting  ten  men.  One  is 
led  first  to  ask,  How  were  they  to  be  shot  ?  The 
authorities  were  having  a  hard  time  in  keeping 
the  building  clear.  They  had  no  guns  or  pistols ; 
scarcely  good  stout  sticks.  It  would  not  have  been 
a  very  usual  course  to  send  about  and  ask  for  volun 
teers,  with  fowling-pieces  and  king's  arms,  to  fire 
promiscuously  into  the  crowd.  As  to  calling  on  the 
militia,  that  method  will  presently  be  considered. 
But  this  much  may  be  said  in  regard  to  shooting  in 
general,  —  a  bullet  does  not  pick  and  choose ;  it  will 
go  through  a  good  man  as  likely  as  through  a  bad 
one.  Now  there  were  in  that  mob  many  good  men, 
friends  of  order  and  friends  of  Mr.  Garrison.  The 
Mayor  testifies  (page  21)  that  ten  or  fifteen  persons 
cried  out,  "  They  are  going  to  hang  him  ;  for  God's 
sake, save  him!  "  and  Mr.  Garrison  (page  36)  speaks 
of  sympathy  showed  him  by  persons  in  the  crowd. 
There  comes  to  us,  then,  this  solemn  question  :  Does 
Mr.  Phillips  advocate  killing  certain  worthy  citizens, 
in  order  that  his  ten  mobocrats  may  be  sent  to  their 


56 


deserved  graves  ?  Perhaps  he  thinks  the  good  men 
had  no  business  there,  and  that  they  should  have 
gone  home,  as  he  did,  leaving  the  regular  authorities, 
and  the  rioters,  and  Mr.  Garrison,  to  settle  it  among 
themselves  as  best  they  might. 

As  to  calling  out  the  militia,  and  getting  the  ten 
men  shot  out  of  hand,  the  Mayor  had  no  more 
authority  to  do  it  than  had  Mr.  Phillips  himself. 
The  legal  process  by  which  the  militia  could  be  got 
on  the  ground  would  have  taken  all  night  for  its 
execution. 

It  may  be  profitable  here  to  examine  the  law  in 
regard  to  the  conduct  of  the  military  in  quelling 
disturbances. 

(1.)  By  what  process  could  a  Mayor  call  out  the 
militia  to  suppress  a  mob  ? 

Mayors  of  cities  had  no  statute  authority,  under 
the  laws  of  the  Commonwealth,  to  issue  orders 
directly  to  the  militia,  until  the  year  1840.  (Ch.  92, 
sec.  27.) 

Previous  to  that  time,  judges  of  certain  courts, 
and  the  sheriff  of  any  county,  within  his  precinct, 
could  issue  warrants  to  the  military  officer  com 
manding  the  battalion  or  company  nearest  the 
scene  of  disturbance,  to  quell  the  riot.  (Rev.  Stat. 
12,  134.  But  the  Act  of  1840  added,  in  explicit 
terms,  "  the  Mayor  of  any  city." 

By  the  constitution  of  Massachusetts  (1780,  ch. 
2,  sec.  1,  art.  7),  the  militia  were  placed  entirely 
in  the  control  of  the  Governor  as  commander-in- 
chief,  and  this  would  effectually  cut  off  any  common- 
law  duties  of  mayors  under  the  English  system. 


57 


Moreover,  the  Acts  of  1787,  cli.  59,  point  out  the 
manner  in  which  the  Mayor  shall  act  in  case  the 
militia  are  needed,  viz.  he  shall  notify  the  Governor 
as  commander-in-chief  that  the  militia  are  wanted, 
and  here  his  power  ends.* 

One  or  two  English  cases  are,  however,  instructive 
on  this  point,  viz.  Rex  v.  Pinney,  5  Carrington  and 
Paine's  Reports,  254.  Here  the  judge  said,  "  It  is  no 
part  of  the  duty  of  a  magistrate  to  go  out  and  head 
the  constables,  neither  is  it  any  part  of  his  duty  to 
marshal  and  arrange  them;  if  he  gives  the  military 
orders  to  act,  it  is  all  that  the  law  requires  of  him." 

This  was  an  information  against  the  Mayor  of 
Bristol  for  alleged  negligence  in  quelling  a  riot,  and 
seems  conclusive  as  to  the  point  that  in  England 
much  discretionary  power  is  given  to  the  military. 

*  The  following  is  the  language  of  the  Acts  of  1787,  ch.  59,  relative 
to  more  speedy  and  effectual  suppression  of  Tumults,  &c.,  &c. 

"  SEC.  2.  Be  it  enacted,  &c.,  That  if  in  the  opinion  of  the  sheriff,  or  any 
two  of  the  justices  either  of  the  Supreme  Judicial  Court,  or  of  the  Court 
of  Common  Pleas  in  any  of  the  Counties  of  this  Commonwealth,  it  shall 
be  necessary  for  the  suppression  of  any  insurrection  existing  or  appre 
hended,  as  aforesaid,  in  said  County,  that  a  force  shall  be  instantly  raised 
and  called  forth  for  that  purpose ;  and  if,  by  reason  of  distance,  the 
necessary  aid  cannot  be  obtained  by  order  of  the  commander-in-chief,  it 
shall  be  the  duty  of  such  sheriff  or  justices  to  certify  the  same  under  his 
or  their  hand  to  the  major-general  or  commanding  officer  of  the  division, 
wherein  such  county  lies,  or  the  commanding  officer  of  some  regiment  or 
corps  in  the  vicinity,  and  to  request  him  or  them  to  detach  the  whole  or 
such  number  of  the  militia  under  the  command  of  such  officer  for  the 
support  of  the  civil  authority,  as  the  said  justices  or  sheriff  may  think 
necessary  to  defeat  the  purposes  of  such  insurgents,  and  to  apprehend 
and  safely  keep  them  for  trial,  and,  as  soon  as  may  be,  to  give  notice  of 
such  application  to  the  commander-in-chief,  that  he  may  take  the  neces 
sary  orders  thereon,  and  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  such  major-general  or 
commanding  officer  to  detach  such  number  of  the  militia,  as  shall  be  re 
quested  as  aforesaid,  armed  and  equipped  according  to  law  ;  the  militia  so 


58 


To  sum  up  the  first  proposition  then :  in  1835,  a 
Mayor  per  se  could  not  call  out  the  militia,  having 
power  only  to  suggest  to  the  Governor  that  an 
exigency  had  arisen  calling  for  military  force. 

(2.)  Under  what  circumstances  may  magistrates 
fire  on  a  mob,  and  after  what  preliminaries  ? 

This  question  is  a  broader  one  than  the  other, 
and  one  in  regard  to  which  the  authorities  are 
somewhat  conflicting. 

By  the  English  Statute  2  Geo.  I.  c.  5  (com 
monly  called  the  Riot  Act),  it  was  provided  that,  "  if 
any  riotous  assembly  did  not  disperse  within  one 
hour  after  proclamation  "  (made  in  due  form  provided 
in  the  act),  "  the  officers  of  the  law  should  seize  and 
apprehend  them "  (enumerating  sheriffs,  mayors  of 
cities,  &c.,  &c.,  as  such  officers) ;  and  "  if  any  persons 

detached  and  collected  shall  afford  their  assistance  to  and  be  under  the 
control  of  the  civil  officer  or  magistrate,  unless  in  case  of  a  rebellion 
declared  by  the  legislature." 

At  this  time,  and  until  after  1835,  there  was  no  form  prescribed  for  the 
certificate  "  under  the  hand  of  said  officers,"  but  the  Revised  Statutes 
gave  one  in  substance,  as  follows :  — 

WARRANT. 

SEAL. 

Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts.  —  SUFFOLK  ss. 

To  A.  B.,  COMMANDING  FIRST  DIVISION  M.  V.  M. 

WHEREAS,  it  has  been  made  to  appear  to  me,  C.  D.,  Sheriff  of  said 
County,  that  there  is  threatened  a  tumult,  riot,  and  mob  of  a  body  of 
men,  acting  together  by  force  with  intent  to  offer  violence  to  persons  and 
property,  and  by  force  and  violence  to  break  and  resist  the  laws  of  this 
Commonwealth  in  said  County  of  Suffolk,  and  that  military  force  is 
necessary  to  aid  the  civil  authorities  in  suppressing  the  same.  Now, 
therefore,  I  command  you  to  parade  (specifying  the  force)  in  due  form 
according  to  law.  Hereof  fail  not  at  your  peril,  &c.,  &c. 

Some  such  form  as  this  was  probably  used  in  1835. 


59 


so  unlawfully,  tumultuously,  and  riotously  assembled, 
or  any  of  them,  should  happen  to  be  killed,  maimed, 
or  hurt  in  the  dispersing,  seizing,  or  apprehending, 
by  reason  of  their  resisting  the  person  so  dispersing, 
seizing,  or  apprehending,  the  said  officers  shall  be 
held  harmless  from  all  private  action  or  criminal 
prosecution  on  account  of  the  killing  or  maiming  as 
aforesaid." 

This  statute  only  embodied  the  common  law,  for 
Blackstone  in  his  Commentaries  (IV.  180)  declares 
that  the  powers  of  magistrates  were  the  same  before 
the  Riot  Act ;  it  would  seem,  therefore,  that  magis 
trates  would  be  safe  in  obeying  their  own  convictions. 
The  decisions,  however,  do  not  bear  out  this  idea. 

In  1768  (after  the  Riot  Act),  Mr.  Gillam,  an  ex 
cellent  magistrate  of  the  County  of  Surrey,  was  tried 
for  his  life  at  the  Old  Bailey,  for  ordering  the  militia 
to  fire,  in  a  riot  in  St.  George's  Fields,  after  long  and 
patiently  enduring  the  provocations  of  the  rioters, 
and  twice  reading  the  Riot  Act ;  of  this  case  we  have, 
unfortunately,  no  full  report,  as  the  Nisi  Prius  Re 
ports  did  not  begin  until  1810,  or  thereabouts.  As 
the  result  of  this,  during  the  Lord  Gordon  riots, 
the  civil  officers  were  unwilling  to  take  any  respon 
sibility  ;  and  they  were  therefore  severely  blamed. 

This  case  shows  the  tenor  of  the  judicial  decisions 
in  the  matter ;  for  every  English  court  has  been  very 
careful  in  its  construction  of  the  act, —  never  justify 
ing  firing  on  a  mob  unless  it  is  proved  to  be  a  last 
resort. 

The  act  itself  justifies  killing  or  maiming  only 
when  the  rioters  resist  the  seizing,  &c.,  &c. 


60 


According  to  the  authorities  on  justifiable  homicide, 
no  officer,  civil  or  military,  is  justified  in  firing  on  a 
mob  and  killing  a  rioter,  unless  he  is  satisfied  the 
riot  can  be  quelled  in  no  other  way.  Judge  Hoar, 
in  his  charge  to  the  Suffolk  Grand  Jury  in  1854  (17 
Law  Reporter,  168),  speaks  of  this  point;  he  intimates 
that  so  many  lives  are  risked  by  any  discharge  of 
fire-arms  by  military,  the  innocent  often  suffering 
with  the  guilty,  that  officers  should  wait  to  the  last 
moment  before  firing. 

To  sum  up :  no  order  to  fire  should  ever  be  given 
while  the  authorities  feel  that  any  expedient  remains 
untried ;  and  they  are  so  strictly  responsible  in  their 
exercise  of  discretionary  power,  that  they  are  person 
ally  liable  to  indictment  for  murder  if  they  show 
any  negligence,  or  too  great  zeal. 

Now  as  to  the  preliminaries  to  be  observed  before 
firing.  In  England  the  Riot  Act,  or  that  part  em 
bracing  the  proclamation,  must  be  read  as  near  the 
riot  as  the  officers  can  come  with  safety,  and  then,  if 
the  mob  does  not  disperse  within  one  hour,  the 
military  may  fire. 

This  custom  has,  however,  never  been  generally 
adopted  in  this  country.* 

*  On  April  8,  1835,  a  statute  was  passed  following  almost  literally  the 
words  of  the  English  Riot  Act,  the  following  being  a  brief  abstract  of 
it:  — 

An  Act  more  effectually  to  suppress  Riots. 

CXL,  1835. 

SEC.  1.  Be  it  enacted,  &c.,  &c.,  That  if  persons  to  the  number  of 
twelve  or  more,  armed  with  dangerous  weapons,  or  if  persons  to  the 
number  of  thirty  or  more,  armed  or  unarmed,  shall  be  riotously,  tumul- 
tuously,  or  unlawfully  assembled  in  any  city,  town,  or  district  in  this 


61 


In  this  country,  therefore,  the  preliminaries  before 
firing  would  vary  in  each  case,  and  cannot  be  defined 
in  general  terms ;  the  law,  however,  would  demand 
that  proper  warning  should  be  given  to  a  mob  before 
they  are  fired  upon,  and  on  a  trial  of  soldiers  for 
homicide  by  firing  on  mobs,  it  would  be  a  question 
for  the  jury  whether  proper  warning  was  given. 

Having  considered  the  charges  preferred  by  Mr. 
Phillips  in  Nos.  II.  and  IV.,  I  would  gladly  have  left 
the  discussion  in  its  simplicity,  and  without  extend 
ing  it  to  other  persons.  And  this  might  have  been 
done,  were  it  not  for  the  note  of  Mr.  Garrison  at  the 
end  of  No.  IV.  Therein  he  not  only  denies  that  he 
was  willing  to  go  to  jail,  but  uses  this  sweeping  ex 
pression,  "  You  are  certainly  right  in  your  criticisms 

Commonwealth,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  mayor  of  such  city  (select 
men,  justices  of  the  peace,  &c.,  &c.)  to  go  among  such  persons,  or  as  near 
as  may  be  safe,  and  to  command  them  to  disperse ;  and  if  they  do  not 
disperse,  said  officers  may  take  them  in  custody  ;  said  officers  may  also 
command  all  bystanders  to  assist  them,  and  persons  refusing  shall  be 
deemed  rioters  and  treated  accordingly. 

SEC.  2.  Be  it  enacted  further,  That  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  mayor 
and  aldermen  of  any  city,  and  every  justice  of  the  peace,  and  selectmen 
of  any  town  or  district,  and  the  sheriff  of  the  county  or  either  of  his 
deputies,  whenever  any  persons  shall  be  unlawfully  assembled  as  afore 
said,  to  immediately  proceed  to  the  place  of  their  assembling,  or  as  near 
thereto  as  safely  may  be,  and  to  take  such  measures  as  are  herein  pro 
vided,  to  disperse  such  assembled  persons ;  and  each  and  every  of  the 
aforesaid  magistrates  and  officers,  who,  knowing  of  such  unlawful  and 
tumultuous  assembly,  shall  neglect  or  refuse  to  proceed  as  aforesaid,  or 
who  shall  wilfully  or  negligently  omit  to  exercise  the  authority  with 
which  he  is  invested  by  this  act,  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemea 
nor,  and  shall  be  liable  to  pay  a  fine  not  exceeding  $  300  for  every 
offence,  to  be  recovered  in  any  court  competent  to  try  the  same. 

SEC.  3.  That  if  any  persons  assembled  as  aforesaid,  after  command 
given  to  them  to  disperse  as  above,  shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  do  so  with- 


62 


of  Mayor  Ly man's  conduct,"  —  which  can  mean 
nothing  less  than  that  Mr.  Phillips  is  right  in  his 
charges,  A  to  F  inclusive ! 

I  wish  Mr.  Garrison  could  be  kept  out  of  this  part 
of  the  discussion.  He  has  shown  himself  a  notable 
man,  perhaps  even  a  great  one.  He  had  a  high  and 
noble  idea  which  was  pursued,  with  an  almost  heroic 
constancy,  to  its  triumph. 

No  one  can  be  surprised  that  Mr.  Garrison  felt  in 
dignant,  after  his  experience  in  the  riot.  Nothing 
can  be  more  annoying,  or  harder  to  bear,  than  that 
mingling  of  the  tragic  and  the  ludicrous  which  ac 
companies  maltreatment  by  a  cowardly  and  mis 
chievous  mob.  But  he  should  not  vent  his  feelings 
on  the  magistrate  who  honestly  defended  him ;  or 

out  unnecessary  delay,  any  two  of  the  magistrates  or  officers  aforesaid 
may  require  the  aid  of  a  sufficient  number  of  persons,  in  arms  or  other 
wise,  and  may  proceed  to  take  such  measures  as  in  the  judgment  of  such 
two  magistrates  or  officers  are  expedient  to  disperse  said  tumultuous  as 
sembly,  and  to  seize  and  secure  the  persons  composing  the  same ;  and  if 
any  such  persons,  or  any  other  person  then  being  present,  as  spectators 
or  otherwise,  shall  be  killed  or  wounded  by  reason  of  the  efforts  of  said  two 
magistrates  or  officers  to  disperse  said  assembly,  said  officers  and  magis 
trates  shall,  as  also  persons  acting  under  their  direction,  be  held  guiltless 
and  justified  in  law  ;  but  if  said  magistrates  or  officers  are  killed,  the 
rioters  shall  be  answerable  therefor. 

Approved  by  the  Lieutenant-Governor^  April  8,  1835. 

By  comparing  the  above  with  the  Riot  Act,  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
words  of  the  two  are  almost  identical,  and  as  the  Riot  Act  was  in  1835  a 
part  of  our  common  law,  this  act  is  plainly  nothing  more  than  an  explicit 
statement  of  the  common  law  doctrine  on  the  subject. 

It  is  undoubtedly  this  act  which  is  referred  to  by  "  Abolitionist "  in 
the  Liberator  (page  29)  ;  but  he  does  not  make  clear  what  use  the  Mayor 
could  make  of  the  act,  since  he  already  had  asked  the  aid  of  good 
citizens,  had  requested  and  commanded  the  crowd  to  disperse,  and  had 
personally,  and  with  his  constables,  struggled  as  hard  as  he  could  with 
the  mob. 


63 


carp  at  the  means  by  which  his  person,  perhaps  his 
life,  was  saved. 

Nobody  thinks,  or  even  pretends,  that  Mr.  Garri 
son  was  sent  to  prison  to  punish  or  disgrace  him,  or 
to  make  him  appear  ridiculous  ;  he  was  sent  there 
for  safety.     Mr.  Phillips  talks  sheer  nonsense  when 
he  demands  that  Garrison's  right  to  sleep  under  his 
own  roof  in  safety  should  be  "vindicated."     No  one 
denied  his  right  to  do  it ;  the  question  was  whether 
he  could  do  it  on  that  particular  night.     Mr.  Garri 
son  (No.   IV.)  speaks  indignantly  of  "  shutting   an 
innocent  man  up  in  jail  in  order  to  save  his  life." 
Very  well ;  should  the  innocent  man  be  left  out-of- 
doors  in  order  to  lose  his  life  ?     The  Mayor's  first 
duty  was  to  protect  this  man ;  and  in  so  doing  he 
was  to  run  no  risks,  he   was  to  see  that  the  man 
was  returned  to  society  alive  and  well.     It  was  for 
him  to  judge  how  strong  his  police  was  and   how 
strong  the  mob  was,  and  to  place  the  man  in  such 
conditions  as  guaranteed  his  safety.     And  for  all  this 
he  was  responsible  under  his  oath.*     The  real  fact 
is,  that  Mr.  Garrison,  in  the  moment  of  peril,  was 
only  too  glad  to  go  to  jail,  or  to  any  other  place 
that  promised  security.     But,  when  the  danger  was 
over,  he  began  to  doubt  whether  he  had  exhibited 
proper  dignity,  and  had  got  as  much  martyrdom  as 

"  In  the  celebrated  Doctors'  Mob  of  1788,  in  New  York,  the  physicians 
and  medical  students  of  that  city  were  confined  two  days  in  the  common 
prison  for  protection  from  the  populace.  I  think  you  [Garrison]  com 
plain  without  reason  of  a  mere  formality,  necessary  in  consequence  of 
the  requirements  of  the  law,  and  not  intended  as  a  gratification  to  the 
mob  or  as  an  injury  to  your  feelings.  I  refer  to  the  charge  made  against 
you  as  a  disturber  of  the  peace." 

"  ANOTHER  ABOLITIONIST  "  in  the  Liberator,  December,  1835. 


64 


was  his  due.  Hence  his  outcry  about  false  imprison 
ment,  and  the  studied  care  with  which,  in  his  ac 
count  (No.  VII.),  he  strives  to  exhibit  his  own  con 
duct  as  remarkably  calm,  while  that  of  the  Mayor  is 
described  as  weak.  He  further  tries  to  speak  as 
lightly  as  may  be  of  the  Mayor's  part  in  the  rescue ; 
indeed,  when  he  says  (page  37)  that  a  tremendous 
rush  was  made  to  "  prevent  his  entering  the  hall," 
one  would  infer  that  he  was  then  rescuing  him- 
self.  _ 

It  is  not  easy  to  prove  the  mental  condition  of  a 
man  at  any  particular  moment;  nevertheless,  there 
is  documentary  evidence  sufficient  to  show  us  what 
were  his  real  sentiments  during,  and  directly  after, 
the  riot.  The  Mayor,  whose  testimony  is  as  admis 
sible  as  that  of  Mr.  Garrison,  says  (page  23),  "  The 
usual  law  paper  was  made  out,  and  Garrison  agreed 
to  go  to  jail  on  the  condition  (as  I  was  informed  by 
Parkman)  that  he  should  not  be  subject  to  any  ex 
pense  " ;  and  again  (page  24),  "  Throughout  the 
whole  of  this  riot  Garrison  acceded  cheerfully  and 
readily  to  the  measures  proposed  for  his  security 
and  protection." 

Mr.  Sewall  (page  30)  says,  "I  believe  Mr.  Garri 
son  went  voluntarily  to  the  jail."  Mr.  Garrison  him 
self  writes  in  the  Liberator  (December  12,  1835), 
"It  is  true  that  I  made  no  objection  to  leaving  his 
[the  Mayor's]  office  "  ;  and,  inasmuch  as  he  "  left  his 
office  "  for  no  other  possible  purpose  than  to  go  direct 
to  the  jail,  we  may  accept  this  as  a  sort  of  Celtic 
euphuism,  to  be  translated  thus,  "  I  went  to  jail, 
and  was  glad  of  the  chance."  As  a  commentary  on 


65 


this  translation,  there  may  be  added  an  extract  from 
the  letter  of  Mr.  Guild  (No.  VIII),  « I  was  informed, 
shortly  after,  that  Mr.  Garrison,  in  relating  his  ex 
perience  in  a  public  meeting,  stated,  that  he  never 
was  so  glad  to  get  into  a  jail  in  his  life." 

More  than  this,  he  was  (for  a  very  short  time)  pos 
itively  grateful  to  Mr.  Lyman,  although  he  soon  after 
diligently  disclaimed  any  such  emotion.  The  follow 
ing  letter,  with  the  indorsement  thereon,  will  ex 
plain  this  assertion. 


No.  XIII. 

COPY  OF  A  LETTER  TO  MR.  KNAPP,  ONE  OF  THE 
PUBLISHERS   OF   THE    LIBERATOR. 

MY  DEAK  Sm  :  — 

You  probably  recollect,  that,  the  morning  after 
the  riot  in  Washington  Street,  in  the  autumn  of 
1835,  you  called  on  me  in  company  with  another 
gentleman,  Mr.  Cobb  [?]  at  my  office  in  the  City 
Hall,  where  we  had  a  long  conversation  on  the 
events  of  the  preceding  day.  Both  you  and  Mr.  C. 
expressed  yourselves  in  terms,  in  regard  to  my  con 
duct,  that  could  not  but  be  very  agreeable  and  flat 
tering  to  me.  Among  other  things,  you  said  that 
you  had  paid  a  visit  to  Mr.  Garrison  that  night, 
and  that  he  remarked  that  he  considered  that  he 
owed  his  life  to  the  exertions  I  made  to  rescue  him 
from  the  hands  of  the  mob.  If  you  still  recollect 
having  made  this  statement  in  substance,  I  shall  feel 
much  obliged  to  you  for  a  reply  to  this  note,  to  that 

9 


66 


effect.  I  ought,  however,  to  add  that,  in  requesting 
the  communication,  nothing  is  further  from  my 
thoughts  than  to  make  any  public  use  of  it.  Hav 
ing  lived  for  many  months  a  life  of  great  solitude 
and  retirement,  I  have  passed  a  portion  of  that  time 
in  looking  over  and  arranging  the  numerous  papers 
in  my  possession  relating  to  the  various  and  multi 
fold  affairs  in  which  I  was  engaged,  during  the  two 
years  I  held  the  office  of  Mayor.  Finding  many 
concerning  the  most  important  event  that  occurred 
while  in  office,  —  and,  while  reading  them,  the  con 
versation  I  had  with  you  and  Mr.  Cobb  [?]  recurring 
fresh  to  my  recollection,  —  I  feel  desirous  to  file  away, 
with  those  I  already  possess,  any  communication  you 
will  take  the  trouble  to  make  to  me  on  that  subject. 

I  am,  &c. 

WALTHAM,  October  19,  1837. 

Will  you  have  the  goodness  to  direct  your  answer 
to  this  Post-Office  ? 

[Indorsement  on  the  copy.] 

The  within  is  a  copy  of  a  letter  to  Knapp,  one  of 
the  editors  or  publishers  of  the  Liberator.  To  my 
knowledge  the  original  note  was  carried  to  the  of 
fice  of  the  Liberator,  but  I  never  received  any  answer 
to  it. 

It  is  perfectly  and  distinctly  fresh  in  my  recollec 
tion  that  Knapp  told  me,  on  the  occasion  men 
tioned  in  this  note,  that  Garrison  told  him,  the  night 
of  the  riot,  21st  October,  1835,  that  he,  Garrison, 
owed  his  life  to  my  exertions  to  protect  and  rescue 
him  from  the  hands  of  the  mob. 


67 


It  is  also  as  fresh  in  my  mind  that  Sheriff  Park- 
man  told  me,  the  day  after  the  riot,  that  Garrison 
made  the  same  statement  to  him  respecting  my 
conduct. 

THEODORE  LYMAN. 

The  following  official  paper  will  prove  how  accu 
rate  was  the  memory  of  Mr.  Lyman. 

No.  XIV. 

STATEMENT   BY   ASSISTANT-MARSHAL   WELLS. 

BOSTON,  1835. 

I  have  deemed  it  expedient,  for  various  reasons, 
to  make  a  record  of  the  following  facts :  — 

A  meeting  of  the  Boston  Female  Antislavery 
Society  was  notified  to  be  held  at  the  rooms  of  the 
Massachusetts  Antislavery  Society,  No.  46  Wash 
ington  Street,  on  the  afternoon  of  October  21, 
1835,  at  which  time  several  addresses  would  be 
made.  In  consequence  of  the  strong  prejudice  ex 
isting  in  the  minds  of  the  citizens  of  Boston  against 
the  proceedings  of  the  Abolitionists,  especially  those 
of  Mr.  George  Thompson,  the  Mayor  of  the  city  in 
structed  me  to  ascertain  from  the  Antislavery  office 
if  the  said  Thompson  was  to  address  the  meeting, 
or  if  he  had  left  the  city ;  at  the  same  time  to  in 
form  them  of  the  object  of  the  inquiry,  which  was, 
that  if  Thompson  was  to  make  an  address,  that  the 
Mayor  might  be  provided  with  sufficient  force  to 
quell  the  riot  which  would  immediately  ensue,  or  if 
he  had  left  the  city,  that  he  might  state  that  fact. 
On  receiving  these  instructions,  I  immediately  called 


68 


at  their  office,  and  obtained  an  interview  with  Wil 
liam  L.  Garrison,  one  of  the  leading  Abolitionists 
and  editors  of  the  Liberator.  He  seemed  rather  to 
question  the  authority  of  the  Mayor  thus  to  inter 
fere  in  their  affairs,  but  on  my  assuring  him  that 
the  only  object  the  Mayor  had  in  view,  in  eliciting 
the  information,  was  to  do  all  he  could  to  preserve 
the  peace  of  the  city ;  and  also,  stating  to  him 
that,  in  case  Mr.  T.  did  address  th.e  meeting,  it  was 
feared  a  riot  would  take  place,  and  that  blood  might 
be  shed,  he  gave  me  the  desired  information,  but  it 
seemed  to  me  with  great  reluctance,  undoubtedly 
thinking  that  a  different  motive  other  than  the  true 
one  prompted  the  inquiry. 

I  should  not  omit  to  mention  that  subsequently 
to  the  morning  interview*  both  Mr.  Garrison  and 
Mr.  Knapp  told  me  that  he  (Mr.  G.)  owed  his  life, 
under  God,  to  the  Mayor.  I  more  readily  make  this 
last  statement,  having  understood  that  Mr.  Garrison 
has  indulged  in  very  violent  and  ungrateful  lan 
guage  upon  the  conduct  of  the  Mayor  of  the  city 
on  that  day. 

This  is?  as  near  as  I  can  recollect,  the  substance  of 
the  interview  with  Mr.  Garrison  on  Wednesday, 
October  21,  1835.  I  had  further  conversation  with 
Mr.  Garrison  on  the  expediency  of  holding  their 
meetings  during  the  highly  excited  state  of  the 
community  on  this  occasion,  but  which  I  do  not 
think  relevant  to  the  present  statement. 

CHARLES  B.  WELLS, 

One  of  the  Assistant-Marshals^  of  the  City  of  Boston. 

*  That  is  to  say,  after  the  riot  had  occurred.  —  ED. 
|  At  that  time  there  were  two  Assistant  Marshals,  and  their  duties 
corresponded  pretty  nearly  to  those  of  our  present  Health  Officers.  —  ED. 


69 


Mr.  Charles  B.  Wells  has  this  day  informed  me 
that  he  wrote  the  paper  to  which  this  certificate  is 
attached. 

I  am  personally  well  acquainted  with  Mr.  "Wells ; 
he  has  been  in  the  service  of  the  city  over  thirteen 
years. 

I  know  the  paper  to  be  written  in  his  hand 
writing,  with  which  I  am  also  acquainted. 

SAMUEL  F.  McCLEARY,  City  Clerk. 
BOSTON,  February  14,  1848. 

The  foregoing  testimony  conclusively  proves,  — 

1.  That  Mr.  Garrison  went  cheerfully,  and  of  his 
own  free-will,  to  jail,  as  to  a  proper  place  of  safety. 

2.  That,  at  one  time,  he  was  deeply  grateful  to 
Mr.  Lyman  as  the  preserver  of  his  life. 

By  what  process  of  reasoning  he  brought  himself 
to  believe  that  he  was  not  frightened,  and  did  not 
wish  to  go  to  jail,  and  was  not  saved  by  the  Mayor, 
is  unimportant.  His  friends  will  perhaps  speak  of 
his  conduct  as  a  change  of  belief;  I  should  be  in 
clined  to  express  it  by  the  more  simple  term, 
ingratitude. 

I  have  spoken  of  the  matter  of  Mr.  Phillips's 
charges ;  and  it  remains  only  to  speak  of  their 
manner. 

In  his  lecture  of  November  1st,  the  style  of  his 
attack  on  the  Mayor  is  his  normal  one,  it  might 
be  called  his  average  every-day  abuse.  (No.  I.) 
When  brought  suddenly  to  defend  himself,  his  old 
legal  instincts  rise  within  him,  and  a  certain  un- 


70 


wonted  caution  is  to  be  observed.  The  Mayor  is  no 
longer  "almost  on  his  knees,"  but  is,  "metaphorically 
speaking,  on  his  knees  " ;  and  he  is  at  pains  to  sum 
mon  witnesses  to  make  his  case  good.  (Nos.  II. 
and  IV.) 

A  couple  of  weeks  later  he  delivered  what  he 
was  pleased  to  term  a  repetition  of  his  discourse,  at 
Steinway  Hall  in  New  York.  Here  he  failed  not  to 
make  up  for  any  little  constraint  he  might  have  felt 
in  Boston,  as  the  following  sentences  will  show :  — 


Boston  Lecture,  Nov.  1.  |  Newspaper  Discussion. 


"  He  saw  the  Mayor 
of  the  city,  cap  in 
hand,  almost  on  his 
knees,  entreating  the 
men  who  were  his  so 
cial  companions  to 
have  the  kindness  to 
obey  the  laws." 


"  Mayor  Lyman  be 
sought  instead  of  com 
manding  that  day,  and 
was,  metaphorically 
speaking,  on  his  knees 
to  the  mob." 


New  York  Lecture, 
Nov.  16. 

"  I  saw  the  Mayor, 
the  representative  of 
law  and  magistracy,  en 
treating,  suing  like  a 
spaniel,  beseeching  like 
a  beggar,  this  crowd  of 
his  social  companions,  to 
respect  the  law.  I  saw 
the  turbulent  defiance, 
the  derisive  laugh,  with 
which  his  good-natured 
appeals  were  received. 
I  saw  him  descend 
lower  and  lower  in  his 
appeals  to  the  mercy 
of  the  mob,  that  they 
would  spare  his  office." 


Whence  these  additions,  —  this  increased  venom  ? 
Do  they  reveal  the  uncontrolled  indignation  of  a 
patriot  against  meanness  and  incornpetency  ?  or  do 
they  betray  the  anger  of  a  coward,  who  seeks  to 
exasperate  the  living  by  insulting  the  dead? 

Who   was   this   person   who   is   spoken   of  as   a 


71 


spaniel,  a  beggar,  and  a  panderer  to  the  worst  pas 
sions  of  mobs  ? 

Perhaps  Carlyle  might  have  called  him  "  an  inar 
ticulate  man  " ;  for  he  never  got  on  platforms  to  tell 
how  good  he  was,  or  how  bad  others  were.  He  was 
one  of  those  whose  right  hand  did  much,  and  the 
left  knew  it  not;  one  who  never  turned  the  poor 
from  his  door ;  one  who  was  a  leader  in  many  move 
ments  for  the  improvement  of  mankind.  Even  Mr. 
Phillips,  tingling  though  he  was  under  the  public 
exposure  of  a  base  calumny,  was  forced  to  say  of 
him,  "  His  services  to  the  cause  of  education  are  an 
honor  to  his  memory." 

Such  actions  go  to  make  a  good  citizen.  He, 
however,  did  something  more.  First  in  this  country 
he  established  the  principle  that  young  culprits  are 
not  to  be  cast,  like  lost  felons,  into  a  common  prison, 
but  are  to  have  a  chance  for  better  lives.  He 
founded  the  State  Reform  School,  and  endowed  it 
with  seventy  thousand  dollars  of  his  money.  Only 
after  his  death  was  it  known  who  had  conferred  this 
benefit  on  the  Commonwealth. 

The  Rebellion  was  Mr.  Phillips's  opportunity. 
Here  was  the  harvest-time  of  the  seed  he  had  sown 
for  many  seasons.  How  feebly  did  he  put  in  the 
sickle ! 

Yet  he  had  good  models  to  follow.  If  Thucydides 
writes  true  history,  Mr.  Phillips  has  copied  closely 
the  oratory  of  a  demagogue  who  lived  more  than 
two  thousand  years  ago.  Cleon,  the  Athenian 
leather-dresser,  had  that  very  way  of  saying  what 


72 


ought  to  be  done,  in  the  most  violent  and  most 
dogmatic  words  the  Attic  dialect  could  furnish.  But 
Cleon  could  do  more  than  talk.  Witness  his  con 
duct  in  the  affair  of  Pylos.  "Give  me/'  he  said, 
"  the  troops  now  in  the  city,  in  addition  to  those  in 
Pylos,  and  I  will  die  for  it,  but  within  three  weeks 
I  bring  you  those  Spartans  prisoners  of  war  !  "  * 
"You  shall  command,"  shouted  the  Demos,  think 
ing  it  the  best  joke  of  the  season.  Cleon  went  to 
Pylos,  stormed  the  Spartan  camp,  and  was  back 
again  with  his  prisoners  within  the  time  fixed. 
Doubtless  he  was  a  demagogue,  and  a  dangerous 
one  ;  but  he  was  no  poltroon,  and  met  his  death  at 
last  on  the  field. 

Mr.  Phillips,  with  a  burst  of  Cleonian  eloquence, 
cries  out  that  in  the  war  he  sees  salvation,  and  that 
every  act  of  his  life  moves  him  to  give  it  a  hearty 
and  hot  welcome.-)- 

Why,  then,  did  he  not  go  to  the  war  ?  Was  he 
a  non-resistant?  Non-resistants  do  not  wish  ten  men 
sent  to  bloody  graves  for  maltreating  Mr.  Garrison. 
Was  he  sick  or  feeble  ?  An  orator  who  can  pace  a 


Tavra  de  e^oiv  ecprj  Trpos  rols  fv  HuXa)  orparicormj  €VTOS 
fi£fiv  AaKf8aijjioviovs  £a>VTas  TJ  avroii  drroKrevflv. 
-  Kai  TOV  K\ea>vos  KaiVep  p.avia>dr)s  ovaa  TJ  V7TO(T^eo-is  a7re[3r)  •  evrbs 
yap  fUoaiv  f}/j.€pcov  fjyayrj  rovs  tivdpas  wairep  VTreo-rrj. 

GovKvdidov  Svyypdcprjs,  IV.  28,  39. 

f  On  April  21,  1861,  he  said  in  Boston:  "Every  act  of  my  life  has 
tended  to  make  the  welcome  I  give  this  war  hearty  and  hot  .....  The 
first  cannon-shot  upon  our  forts  has  put  the  war-cry  of  the  Revolu 
tion  on  her  lips  .....  No  man  can  prevail  against  the  North  in  the 
nineteenth  century."  He  also  spoke  of  the  "  Abolitionists  who  thank 
God  that  He  has  let  them  see  salvation  before  they  die."  —  SCHOULER'S 
Massachusetts  in  the  Civil  War,  p.  113. 


73 


stage  by  the  hour  and  shout  slander  to  two  thousand 
people,  might  well  sit  on  a  horse  and  cry  "Forward!" 
to  a  brigade  of  infantry.  Was  he  too  ignorant  or 
too  old  ?  General  James  Wadsworth  was  the  older 
man,  and  knew  no  more  than  he  of  military  art. 
I  saw  General  Wadsworth  with  his  gray  hair,  as  he 
rode,  at  the  head  of  his  division,  into  the  thickets  of 
the  Wilderness.  And  there,  in  the  forefront  of  the 
battle,  he  fell,  —  a  simple  gentleman,  who  did  not 
think  he  could  do  more  good  by  staying  at  home. 

The  War  was  Mr.  Phillips's  opportunity.  Brave 
deeds  would  have  compelled  men  to  bury  under 
laurels  the  memory  of  his  slanderous  abuse  and 
murderous  eloquence.  But  he  lost  that  opportunity  : 
and  posterity  will  remember  only  his  eloquence,  his 
bitterness,  his  injustice,  and  his  cowardice. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

RENEWALS  ONLY— TEL.  NO.  642-3405 
This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


LD21A-60m-6,'69 
(J9096slO)476-A-32 


General  Library 

University  of  California 

Berkeley 


